System and method of controlling an HVAC system

ABSTRACT

A system and method manage delivery of energy from a distribution network to one or more sites. Each site has at least one device coupled to the distribution network. The at least one device controllably consumes energy. The system includes a node and a control system. The node is coupled to the at least one device for sensing and controlling energy delivered to the device. A control system is coupled to the node and distribution network for delivery to the node at least one characteristic of the distribution network. The node controls the supply of energy to the device as a function of the at least one characteristic.

RELATED APPLICATIONS

The present application is a continuation of and claims priority to U.S.patent application Ser. No. 10/402,370 filed Mar. 28, 2003, nowabandoned which claims priority to U.S. Provisional Patent ApplicationSer. No. 60/368,963 filed Mar. 28, 2002 and to U.S. Provisional PatentApplication Ser. No. 60/383,027 filed on May 24, 2002, all of which arehereby incorporated by reference.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The present invention relates generally to the delivery of a commodity,and more particularly, to a system and method for managing the deliveryand usage of a commodity such as electricity, natural gas, steam, water,chilled or heated water, or potable or recycled water.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

Traditionally, utilities have done an excellent job of providing areliable source of power to their customers. Utilities do this byaccurately predicting consumer demand and then ensuring that they haveadequate generation resources available to meet that demand.Historically, demand for power increases each year during peak heatingand cooling months, resulting in a need for ever increasing amounts ofgeneration capacity. A review of the peak period demand clearly showthat the need for a substantial amount of new generation assets could beeliminated if there was a way to shift some of the demand from peak tooff peak times.

The deregulation of the electric industry has heightened concerns overpower outages, price volatility and how the eventual outcome will impactthe economy and our way of life.

For example, recent events in California have captured the headlines andamplify these concerns. California suffers from 10 years of load growthwith no new generation facilities being built to meet the demand.Internet data centers like the one in San Jose represent unanticipatednew demands for power 24 hours a day equal to that of 60,000 homes.State mandated deregulation activities forced the major utilities tosell off their generation assets resulting in them having to buy thepower they used to self generate from others.

Demand reduction programs and more advanced controls have been proposedto assist in reducing demand during peak times.

Currently, utilities do offer demand reduction programs to theircustomers. These programs are designed to shift loads out of peakperiods by providing a financial incentive for consumers to move loadsto a time when it is less expensive for the utility to produce or obtainpower. Time of day rate is an example of such a program.

Another type of program offered by utilities is the traditional DemandSide Management (DSM) program. This type of program provides thecustomer a monthly credit for allowing the utility to interrupt power tomajor loads in their home during peaks or emergencies.

While both of these programs have been shown to work, they each havetheir problems. Time of day rate programs may be difficult for customersto understand. Therefore these programs have a very low participationrate among the customer base. DSM programs, on the other hand, have amuch higher participation rate. However, DSM load sheds are seldomexercised by the utility. And, when the utility does exercise a loadshed, the resulting interruption of power tends to affect customercomfort, thereby causing large numbers of customers to drop out of theprogram. In addition, current DSM programs cannot differentiate betweenthose consumers that contribute to a load control, and those that don't,while providing incentive credits to all who sign up.

While both time of day rates and DSM programs can be effective, eachhave challenges in the area of customer satisfaction that erode theirusefulness. In addition, utilities earn little revenue from these typesof offerings and therefore look to new generation as a more economicallyviable option.

Thermostats, thermostatic control devices and environmental controlsystems have been designed, manufactured and placed in use for manyyears. These devices are primarily designed to sense the temperatureinside a site and based on occupant designated setting, activate theheating and/or air conditioning system or systems to maintain a comfortlevel based on the occupants designated level of comfort. There are twomain types of design for these devices: a standard single control deviceor a dual control system.

The standard single control device can be set to activate a heating orcooling system based upon a manual switch to select either system and adegree setting mechanism to select the desired temperature to heat orcool to if the temperature falls or rises below or above the occupantdesignated set point. A dual control system is attached to both aheating and cooling system which has two set points, one for the heatingsystem activation and one for the cooling system activation. With thistype of a control, the user sets a desired minimum temperature, belowwhich the heating system will be activated to raise the temperatureduring winter seasons, and a maximum temperature, above which thecooling system will be activated to drop the temperature during summerseasons.

This type of temperature control device provides the occupant theconvenience of not having to manually select either the heating orcooling system, as is the case of the standard single control device,and allows the occupant to define a temperature range between which theyare comfortable. Using these two main types of design as a base line,there are many variations, which have been developed over time. Over theyears, these sensing and control devices have moved from traditionalbi-metal contractors to more sophisticated electronic devices over theyears, and have incorporated the ability to be programmed with multipleset points for both heating and cooling as well as having the ability toactivate these different set points based on time of day, day of week,and/or externally generated control signals from utility companiesindicating a fixed cost tier that is in effect, e.g., low, medium, high& critical, and to interface with an infra-red motion sensor thatautomatically sets back the temperature to a predetermined point basedon the presence of a person in the area. However, most end use consumersdo not have the time, experience, and/or access to data to monitor,track, and use these devices.

The present invention is aimed at one or more of the problems set forthabove.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

In one aspect of the present invention, a system and method managedelivery of energy from a distribution network to one or more sites.Each site has at least one device coupled to the distribution network.The at least one device controllably consumes energy. The systemincludes a node and a control system. The node is coupled to the atleast one device for sensing and controlling energy delivered to thedevice. A control system is coupled to the node and distribution networkfor delivering to the node at least one characteristic of thedistribution network. The node for controls the supply of energy to thedevice as a function of the at least one characteristic.

In another aspect of the present invention, a method of shifting energyrequirements from a first period of time is provided. The methodincludes the steps of measuring energy usage of a controlled deviceoperated by a customer, cutting off energy to the controlled deviceduring the first time period, and providing a rebate to the customerbased on actual energy savings as a function of the first time period,the measured energy usage, and known power requirements.

In still another aspect of the present invention, a thermostat devicefor controlling a heating and/or cooling system through interaction witha user is provided. The heating and/or cooling system are supplied withenergy through a power distribution network. The thermostat includes acontrol panel for receiving input from the user and a display coupled tothe control panel for visually presenting information to the user. Thethermostat device is adapted to receive a characteristic of the energybeing supplied and for displaying the characteristic on the display.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

Other advantages of the present invention will be readily appreciated asthe same becomes better understood by reference to the followingdetailed description when considered in connection with the accompanyingdrawings wherein:

FIG. 1A is a block diagram of an energy management system, according toan embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 1B is a diagrammatic illustration of one implementation of theenergy management system of FIG. 1A;

FIG. 1C is a flow diagram of a process for managing energy deliveryaccording to an embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 2A is a block diagram of a gateway node used in the energymanagement system of FIG. 1A;

FIG. 2B is a block diagram of a metering node used in the energymanagement system of FIG. 1A;

FIG. 2C is a block diagram of a control node used in the energymanagement system of FIG. 1A;

FIG. 2D is a block diagram of a load control node used in the energymanagement system of FIG. 1A;

FIG. 2E is a block diagram of an implementation of the energy system ofFIG. 1A at a customer site;

FIG. 3A is an illustration of an advanced thermostat device, accordingto an embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 3B is a block diagram of the advanced thermostat device of FIG. 3A;

FIGS. 3C–3G are graphs illustrating an exemplary economic and comfortmanagement control strategy, according to an embodiment of the presentinvention;

FIG. 4A is a graphical illustration of a customer GUI, according to anembodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 4B is a graphical illustration of a control panel of the GUI ofFIG. 4A;

FIG. 4C is a graphical illustration of a virtual thermostat of the GUIof FIG. 4A;

FIG. 4D is a graphical illustration of an occupancy mode screen of theGUI of FIG. 4A;

FIG. 4E is a second graphical illustration of the occupancy mode screenof FIG. 4D;

FIG. 4F is a third graphical illustration of the occupancy mode screenof the GUI of FIG. 4D;

FIG. 4G is a graphical illustration of a thermostat scheduling calendarof the GUI of FIG. 4A;

FIG. 4H is a graphical illustration of a thermostat scheduling panel ofthe GUI of FIG. 4A;

FIG. 4I is a graphical illustration of a select day type drop down listof the GUI of FIG. 4A;

FIG. 4J is a graphical illustration of a config alert screen of the GUIof FIG. 4A;

FIG. 4K is a graphical illustration of a report screen of the GUI ofFIG. 4A;

FIG. 4L is a graphical illustration of a daily temperature report pop upscreen of the GUI of FIG. 4A;

FIG. 4M is a graphical illustration of a daily electrical report pop upscreen of the GUI of FIG. 4A;

FIG. 4N is a graphical illustration of a configuration data screen ofthe GUI of FIG. 4A;

FIG. 4O is a graphical illustration of a thermostat data screen of theGUI of FIG. 4A;

FIG. 4P is a graphical illustration of a heating drop down list of theGUI of FIG. 4A;

FIG. 4Q is a graphical illustration of a cooling drop down list of theGUI of FIG. 4A;

FIG. 4R is a graphical illustration of a program participation screen ofthe GUI of FIG. 4A;

FIG. 5A is a graphical illustration of a utility GUI, according to anembodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 5B is a graphical illustration of an immediate supply screen of theGUI of FIG. 5A;

FIG. 5C is a graphical illustration of an available program capacitypop-up of the GUI of FIG. 5A;

FIG. 5D is a graphical illustration of a scheduled supply screen of theGUI of FIG. 5A;

FIG. 5E is a graphical illustration of a find eligible program dialog ofthe GUI of FIG. 5A;

FIG. 5F is a graphical illustration of program summery table of the GUIof FIG. 5A;

FIG. 5G is a graphical illustration of a program definition screen ofthe GUI of FIG. 5A;

FIG. 5H is a graphical illustration of a reports screen of the GUI ofFIG. 5A; and,

FIG. 5I is a graphical illustration of a portion of the reports screenof FIG. 5H.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

1. Energy Management System and Methods—Overview

With reference to the drawings, and in operation, the present inventionrelates generally to a system 1.02 and method for managing the deliveryand usage of a commodity, such as electricity, natural gas, steam,water, chilled or heated water, or potable or recycled water. Morespecifically, the system 1.02 is adaptable to manage the delivery andusage of energy, e.g., electricity and natural gas. While the belowdiscussion focuses on the management of the delivery and/or usage ofelectricity, the present invention is not limited to such the deliveryand/or usage of electricity.

In general, the system 1.02 allows at least one customer (or user)located at a customer site (indicated by reference number 1.04) and/or autility (indicated by reference number 1.06) to manage delivery or usageof the electricity to the customer's site 1.04. The utility 1.06 mayinclude both the generation of the electricity, e.g., via power plants,and/or the transmission of electricity to the customer sites 1.04.

The customer site 1.04 includes at least one device 1.08 which useselectricity and at least one node 1.10. In the illustrated embodiment,the customer site 1.04 includes three devices: a metered device 1.08A, acontrolled device 1.08B, and a metered and controlled device 1.08C. Eachdevice 1.08 may have an associated node 1.10.

As discussed in more detail below, in the illustrated embodiment, thereare four different types of nodes 1.10: a load metering node 1.10A, acontrol node 1.10B, a load control node 1.10C, and a gateway node 1.10D.

The gateway node 1.10D provides two way communication between thegateway 1.10D and each other node 1.10A, 1.10B, 1.10C and between thegateway node 1.10D and a utility control system 1.12. It should be notedthat although there are only one of each the devices 1.08A, 1.08B,1.08C, shown, there may be any number of each type of device 1.08A,1.08B, 1.08C (including zero).

The load metering node 1.10A, in general, measures the instantaneouspower being delivered (typically, in kWh) to the associated metereddevice 1.08A. The load metering node 1.10A may also determine the totalpower delivered to the metered device 1.08A over a predetermined periodof time, e.g., every 15 or 20 minutes. Information related to theinstantaneous power being delivered and the accumulated power isdelivered to utility 1.06 via the gateway control node 1.10D. Forexample, the metered device 1.08A may be an electricity meter whichmeasures all power being supplied to the customer site 1.04.

The control node 1.10B, in general, is used to control the controlleddevice 1.08B. In the simplest form the control node 1.10B maycontrollably cut off and supply power to the controlled device 1.08B.For example, if the controlled device 1.08B is a pool pump used tofilter a pool (not shown), the control node 1.10B may simply turn powerto the pool pump on and off. Alternatively, the control node 1.10B mayhave control over features of the controlled device 1.08B, e.g., starttime, end time, duration, etc.

The load control node 1.10C, in general, is used to both measure theinstantaneous power being delivered to the controlled and metered device1.08C and controls the device 1.08C. The load control node 1.10C mayalso determine the total power delivered to the metered and controlleddevice 1.08C over a predetermined period of time, e.g., every 15 or 20minutes.

Nodes 1.10 may be utilized with any type of device 1.08 for which it isdesirable to control and/or measure its power usage. For example, nodes1.10 may be associated with the entire customer site 1.04, a pool pump,an HVAC system, a water heater, any appliance, such as a refrigerator,dishwasher, hot tubs, irrigation and well pumps, spas, coffer maker,etc., or other electrical or electronic device, e.g., televisions,stereos, etc.

The type of node 1.10 which is used with a device 1.08 is dependent uponthe device and whether it is desirable to measure the device's powerusage, control the device or both. In one aspect of the presentinvention a node 1.10 may be separate from the device 1.08. For example,in each device 1.08 it may be desirable to measure the energy usage ofthe entire customer site 1.04. Thus, a load metering node 1.10A may beassociated with the site's electric meter.

Nodes 1.10 may either be integrated with the corresponding device 1.08or be separate. For example, a load metering node 1.10A may be aseparate device which is coupled to an electric meter (for retro-fitpurposes). Alternatively, nodes 1.08 may be designed and manufactured tobe integral with the devices 1.10.

The customer may access and control the system 1.02 through a userinterface 1.14 (see below). The user interface 1.14 may be incorporatedinto another device, such as a thermostat (see below). Additionally, thecustomer may be given access to the system 1.02 through externaldevices, such as, mobile phones, personal digital assistants (PDA),laptop computers, desktop computers, or other suitable devices. Suchdevices may be linked to the system 1.02 via the internet, a wirelessdata network, or other suitable system.

The system 1.02 may be further accessed and controlled at the utility1.06 via a utility interface 1.16 (see below).

In one aspect of the present invention, the load metering node 1.10A,the control node 1.10B, and the load control node 1.10C communicate withthe gateway node 1.10D. In another aspect of the present invention, theload metering node 1.10A, the control node 1.10B, the load control node1.10C., and the gateway node 1.10D may all communicate with each other.In the illustrated embodiment, the nodes 1.10 are interconnected by anetwork 1.18. The network 1.18 may be a wired network, such as anethernet network, or a wireless network.

An exemplary implementation of the system 1.02 is shown in FIG. 1B. Inthis illustrated embodiment, the gateway node 1.10D communicates to theutility control system 1.12 via an “always on”, secured wired orwireless network 1.20 through a cable modem, DSL modem, or othersuitable means (not shown). The utility control system 1.12 may beimplemented in software which is stored and executed on a back-endserver 1.22 (see below).

In one aspect of the present invention, utility control system 1.12 andthe back-end server 1.22 may be provided by and/or serviced and/ormaintained by a third party, i.e., a service provider.

Access to the utility control system 1.12 may be provided at the utility1.06 through a secure network 1.26 such as a virtual private network(VPN).

Remote access to the system 1.02 may be provided to the customer throughthe back-end server 1.22 via the internet 1.28.

In the illustrated embodiment, the customer site 1.04 includes a metereddevice 1.30A, shown as an electric meter, a controlled device 1.30B,shown as a pool pump (illustrated graphically as a pool), and a meteredand controlled device 1.30C, shown as a water heater. It should benoted, however, that any particular site may include zero, one or moreof each type of device. In the illustrated embodiment, the system 1.02also includes an advanced thermostat device 1.30D. Each device 1.30A,1.30B, 1.30C, 1.30D communicates with the gateway node or gateway 1.10D.

As discussed more fully below, the customer has access to the system1.02 and is able to monitor and control the nodes 1.10 and/or thedevices 1.08 through the user interface 1.14.

The utility 1.06 may also monitor and control the usage of electricityby controlling the nodes 1.10 and/or the devices 1.08. Morespecifically, the utility 1.08 may define, modify, implement, and engageone or more Power Supply Program (hereinafter PSP or PROGRAM orPROGRAMS) which are designed to alleviate or reduce energy demand duringpeak periods. A PROGRAM may either be mandatory or optional. The user,through the user interface 1.14, may be able to subscribe or sign up forone or more optional PROGRAMS. A PROGRAM may be either automaticallyimplemented when a predetermined set of conditions occur, such as timeof day, or may be engaged, by the utility 1.06, as electricity demandsrequire.

For example, a PROGRAM may automatically shift discretionary residentialloads out of peak demand periods and credit consumers who participatewith KWH rebates based on their actual (measured & verified)contributions. In one embodiment, the rebates would be directly relatedto the cost of the fuel or electricity during the shifted period. ThisPROGRAM delivers the same results Time Of Day rates were designed todeliver without a variable KWH cost component. Rebates for shiftingdemand provide the consumer incentive versus higher rates in peakperiods. Further, the PROGRAM provides a variable rebate based on acustomers actual contribution, instead of a fixed rebate.

With reference to FIG. 1C, in one embodiment of the present invention, amethod of shifting energy requirements from a first period of time, isprovided. The method includes the step of measuring energy usage of adevice 1.08 operated by a customer (first step 1.32A). The device 1.08has a known power rating. In a second step 1.32B, energy to the device1.08 is cut off during the first time period. In a third step 1.32C, arebate is provided to the customer based on actual energy savings as afunction of the first time period, the measured energy usage, and theknown power requirements.

For example, returning to FIG. 1B, a PROGRAM may be defined to includeall pool pumps for a given set of customers, e.g., in a geographiclocation. The PROGRAM may be further defined by not allowing the poolpumps to run during a set period of the day. Customers having a poolpump may sign up or “subscribe” to the PROGRAM. The power rating for acustomer's pool pump must be known and is stored within the system 1.02.A load control node 1.10C is either integral with or separate andcoupled to the pool pump. The load control node 1.10C receives a signalfrom the utility control system 1.12 to disable the pool pump during thefirst time period. The load control node 1.10C further measures energyusage of the pool pump during the first time period to confirm that thepool pump is not running.

Another PROGRAM may also perform soft load control (control of comfortlevels) on HVAC systems by modifying thermostat set points, use oftemperature ramping and restricting the use of heat strips and secondarystages of compression (see below).

In one aspect of the present invention, the system 1.02 is designed tooperate like a power plant, in that it would be dispatched every workingday to shift peak loads but would not operate on weekends or holidays.Further, the energy saved through engagement of a PROGRAM may be viewedas capacity in the same manner as the capacity of a power plant.

In one aspect of the present invention, the system 1.02 records actualinterval data for a given entity or customer, and for each device 1.08within that entity, or subsets thereof, as desired. In the case wherethe entity is a home, for example, actual energy interval data can becollected for each appliance, and/or selected appliances. Communicationsbetween the gateway node 1.10D and the other nodes 1.10A, 1.10B, 1.10Ccan be via wired or wireless means, including microwave, infrared, RadioFrequency (RF), or other wireless communications method. The actualinterval data can be a basis for computing a customer's rebate. Thegateway node 1.10D can additionally collect information regarding thehealth and maintenance of the energy devices to which it communicates.Accordingly, the gateway node 1.10D and the other nodes 1.10A, 1.10B,1.10C, can be equipped to communicate based on the wired or wirelesscommunications channel. Furthermore, the communications can bebi-directional, and can be encoded. The gateway node 1.10D can furthercommunicate with the at least one server, and vice-versa. The gatewaynode 1.10D can thus include a processor and an Ethernet connection.Communications to the server can be via cable modem, DSL, power linecarrier modem, or another bi-directional wired or wireless securedcommunications link.

In one embodiment, the gateway node 1.10D may include memory (see below)for storing pricing and scheduling information. For example, a gatewaynode 1.10D may store fifteen days of data when ninety-six readings fromdevices 1.08 are made per day.

Rebates can be provided based on, for example, overall usage. In oneillustration, if a water heater is “on” for ⅓ of the time, historically,a consumer can get a ⅓ rebate for a non-peak period water heater usagebased on the water heater being “off” for the entire peak interval.

The system 1.02 may also be adapted to receive from the customer abudget goal for a specified time period, e.g., one month. The system1.02 may then monitor the customer's usage and send an email or othernotification to the customer if it is determined that the specifiedbudget goal will be exceeded during the specified time period.

As explained above and more fully described below, the system 1.02 mayalso include an advanced thermostat device 1.30D. The system 1.02 mayhave the ability to sense the current indoor temperature and could beenhanced to include at a minimum, humidity sensing, outside temperature,UV intensity, wind direction and speed, relative humidity, wet bulbthermometer, dew point and local weather forecast data or encodedsignals as well as other analog or digital inputs used in thecalculation of and maintenance of occupant comfort. In its basic form,the system 1.02 will manage the indoor air temperature. Using theoptional enhanced system inputs, the system 1.02 may also manage the airquality and humidity at the site by controlling the operation of theappropriate heating, filtration, conditioning and cooling equipment inconjunction with damper and fresh air input ducts, electro-staticfilters and ionization devices to maximize comfort and indoor airquality. The system 1.02 may manage its operation of the availableenvironmental conditioning resources to maintain the optimumtemperature, humidity and air quality conditions based on user definedminimum and maximum values for comfort indices and price of energyindices. In a more elaborate implementation, the system 1.02 may alsohave the ability to switch energy types e.g., electric versus gas forenvironment heating and would also have the ability to switch suppliersbased on the asking price of the energy supplier serving the location ifthe services of an energy broker are utilized.

In one aspect of the present invention, the system 1.02 balances twoprimary factors. First, the system 1.02 maintains the environment withinoccupant defined acceptable minimum and maximum values at least fortemperature and could be expanded to handle humidity and air quality.Second, the system 1.02 may vary these acceptable parameters based, onat a minimum, user defined preferences, price points and historical data(the gathering and retention of which is described later) to achieve theoptimum environmental conditions. To provide feedback to the customer,the system 1.02 may also record the number of energy units (energy unitsas used here include for examples: kilowatt hours, BTU's, Therms, andJules but is not so limited) used as a function of time for each of theloads monitored and/or controlled by the system 1.02 and would have theability to report back detailed consumption data as a function of timeand summarize these details to provide, at a minimum, daily averages forany defined period, monthly totals, as will as track the costs of eachenergy unit consumed per period and provide detailed and average dailycost for any user defined period as well as monthly totals. The system1.02 may permit the entry of daily, weekly and monthly budget amountsfor energy. The system 1.02 may monitor usage and provide visual andaudible alerts if these amounts are being exceeded, thereby providingthe opportunity to make corrections to system settings to achievedesired economic results. The system 1.02 may be capable of controllingloads beyond its primary management function of the environmental airmanagement systems using the same economic modeling techniques andcontrols that it uses to manage its primary functions. It may alsomanage, report and track total site 1.04 energy unit usage and interfacewith energy unit suppliers via a communications channel. The systemcontrols will be located at the site 1.04, while the processors formodeling and managing the sources and types of energy units to beutilized and committed to will be distributed (at energy brokers, ESP'sand utilities) and operate over a communications network without regardto the actual location of or distance from the site 1.04.

In summary, and as explained in detail below, the system 1.02 supportsand provides a wide array of monitoring and control points including:

-   -   Whole house interval metering;    -   HVAC thermostat monitoring and control;    -   Sub-metering and control of other major loads (such as pumps and        electric water heaters); and,    -   Net metering for effective management of distributed generation        assets.

In one embodiment, the system 1.02 is designed to provide monitoring andcontrol of major loads, e.g., total electric load, HVAC systems, waterheater, and pool pump (if existent). In another embodiment, the system1.02 provides monitoring of most, if not all, devices which requireenergy, e.g., electricity or gas.

The system 1.02 is “always on”, connecting the nodes 1.10 to the utilitycontrol system 1.02. This allows the system 1.02 to provide much higherlevels of monitoring and management of loads. The ‘always on’connectivity allows the utility 1.06 to know exactly how much load isavailable from each participating end use device 1.08 at a customer site1.04 and allows the utility 1.06 to aggregate that load up to a circuit,sub station or to any other desired combined total. The utility 1.06 maytarget specific loads or geographic areas and manage demand more closelyby getting verification of control requests as curtailment commands areinitiated. The utility 1.06 can then pass detailed load curtailment dataon to the back-office billing programs at the utility where credits canbe applied to consumer bills commensurate with their contributions.

In another aspect of the present invention, the system 1.02 has theability to monitor and control remote generating capacity such asphotovoltaic systems (not shown) which may be located at a consumer site1.04. Just as the system can monitor and verify load control reductions,it is equally capable of monitoring, dispatching and verifying remotegeneration capacity.

In still another aspect of the present invention, the system 1.02 allowsthe utility 1.06 to respond to requests for additional electricalsupply. For example, when the utility 1.06 requires an increase inelectrical supply, the utility 1.06 will be able to review currentcapacity and call upon some or all of that capacity in an ImmediateSupply Request. Using the system 1.02, the utility 1.06 may command oneor more customer sites 1.04 that meet the specified criteria, e.g., orenrolled in a specific PROGRAM, to provide their power contribution tothe system's power generation supply. The gateway nodes 1.10D willcontinuously update the system 1.02 with current demand information inthe form of available messages. That information, along with profiledata, can be presented to a system operator to help them locate the bestsupply to call upon.

In one embodiment of the present invention, the utility interface 1.16and the user interface 1.14 may be provided through a web browser (seebelow), such as Internet Explorer, available from Microsoft Corp. ofRedmond, Wash.

The utility interface 1.16 may display the capability to define PowerSupply Programs (PSP or PROGRAMS) in the system 1.02 and selectivelyapply substations and circuits that will participate in the PROGRAM whenactivated. The system 1.02 through the utility interface 1.16 mayinclude the following capabilities.

The system 1.02 may allow an operator at the utility 1.06 to selectivelyassign devices 1.08 that apply to a specific PROGRAM. One or moresubstations and/or circuits may be included within the PROGRAM.

The system 1.02 may receive or generate an Immediate Supply Request(ISR) when additional electrical supply is needed. The Immediate SupplyRequest may include a start time and the supply request duration.

An operator, using the utility interface 1.16, activates one or morePROGRAMS in response to the ISR. Activation of the one or more PROGRAMSmay be immediate or scheduled at a future time. To activate a PROGRAM, aPROGRAM schedule is downloaded to each of the gateway nodes 1.10D ornodes 1.10 affected. In one embodiment, the PROGRAM schedule may bedownloaded to the appropriate gateway nodes 1.10D or other node 1.10 inadvance of the scheduled time of operation.

In another aspect of the present invention, the system 1.02 can track,record, store, compute, etc. which customers actually participate in aPSP and how much demand was reduced in the home for the PROGRAM period.

The utility interface 1.16 may also display the current load generationavailable from the existing system 1.02. For example, a view of thecurrent Power Distribution Network for a utility company includingTransmission Substations (TSS), Distribution Substations (DSS), andcircuits may be provided. The view may be appropriately annotated withidentification information for each branch of the network (TSS, DSS andcircuit). The view may display an aggregated capacity for a branch ofthe network currently available. The view may also indicate whether aPROGRAM is currently active on a branch of the system 1.02. For anactive power supply program, the scheduled completion time may also beindicated.

The system 1.02 may also continually aggregate capacity and the currentstatus of the distribution network and provides the updated informationfor display on the utility interface 1.16.

In a further aspect of the present invention, the utility interface 1.16may allow the operator to analyze profiles of homes and individual loadtypes. This data can allow the utility 1.06 to assess which loads shouldbe curtailed to achieve the needed demand reduction. The system 1.02 maycalculate home load profiles based upon information received from theload metering nodes 1.10A and/or load control nodes 1.10C. This mayinclude HVAC profiling. Using this data, site load profile data can beaggregated for the electrical distribution network topology.

The network topology load profile may be displayed as a snapshot to theoperator. The operator may also review load profiles available in thesystem 1.02 at a specified time of day.

Configuration data is downloaded from the system 1.02 to each of thegateway nodes 1.10D. For example, this may be done at one or more of thefollowing: at predetermined times, when requested by a gateway node1.10D, and/or when a change, such as activation of a PROGRAM, hasoccurred.

For example, configuration data may include, but is not limited to thefollowing: communication parameters for system components, schedules andpower supply programs. In one embodiment, each device 1.08 has a uniqueidentifier, such as a MAC address or an RF logical address. The intendeddevice 1.08 for a given message may be included in the message receivedfrom the system 1.02.

In one aspect of the present invention, communications to and from thegateway nodes 1.10D or other nodes 1.10 are secured. For example, thecommunications may be secured using Secure Sockets Layer (SSL).

In another aspect of the present invention, if the system 1.02 losescommunications with a gateway node 1.10D for a predetermined time, thesystem 1.02 may generate a Service Report.

In one aspect of the present invention, a gateway 1.10D may generate amessage when a controlled device 1.08 has a change of state that altersits contributable supply by more than a predetermined range, i.e., areal-time demand range. The system 1.02 may use these updates to keep alive running total of available supply for the entire electricaldistribution network and make these values available at the utilityinterface 1.16. In another aspect of the present invention, the systemmaintains a history of the consumption rates as a function fo time tocreate historical usage by device type and program to aid in planningand forecasting demand by device type. These values are available at theutility interface 1.16. In one embodiment, the system 1.02 may ignoresupply values from a gateway node 1.10D that are older than apredetermined period of time, such as 30 minutes old.

The system may also receive messages from a gateway node 1.10D atpredetermined time intervals, such as 15 minutes, whether a load changesor not. These messages can include the (a) demands generated for adevice 1.08 in a PROGRAM and (b) the total demand generated for devices1.08 in a PROGRAM. In one embodiment these messages may also include agateway ID, a utility ID string, time/date stamp, current power draw ofevery controllable device 1.08, and whole house demand.

Through the user interface 1.14, the customer may have local and remoteaccess to a rich set of functions and features. Some or all of thesefunctions and features may be accessible through the thermostat 1.30Dand/or through the internet 1.28 (via a web browser).

Using the user interface 1.14, the customer may directly access andcontrol in-home devices 1.08. For example, with regard to the thermostat1.30D, the customer may view current temperature, view current heatingor cooling setpoint(s), override heating or cooling setpoint(s), resumescheduled heating or cooling setpoint(s), view heat/cool/auto mode,change the heat/cool/auto mode.

With regard to the electric meter 1.30A, the customer may view currentelectric meter accumulated consumption (kWh), view current electricmeter demand (kW), view historical meter data.

With regard to a metered controlled device 1.08C, such as the waterheater 1.30C, the customer may view current equipment load status(on/off data), control the state of output relays (on/off), view andoverride curtailment conditions of the device 1.08C, and/or view currentdemand and consumption data of the device 1.08C.

In one aspect of the present invention, the user interface 1.14 includesa scheduling feature. The scheduling feature allows the customer tocustomize the devices 1.08 to operate according to personal preferences(rather than a default configuration).

In one embodiment, the following scheduling features are accessiblethrough the user interface 1.14.

With regard to the thermostat, the customer may define up to a pluralityof occupancy modes, e.g., 8, for use in daily schedules, define dailyschedules using an unlimited number of day-types, assign day-types usingmonthly calendars.

With regard to a controlled and metered device 1.08C, the customer may,for example, define a run-time operation and/or a desired start time.

Using the user interface 1.14, the customer may view or generate avariety of reports to view historical information about their homes andthe devices 1.08 within. For example, some of the reports which may beavailable include:

-   -   Daily temperature reports displaying temperature and setpoints        in, e.g, 15-minute intervals.    -   Monthly temperature reports displaying daily low, high and        average temperatures.    -   Daily electrical reports displaying electrical consumption        hourly and electrical costs in e.g., 15-minute intervals.    -   Monthly electrical reports displaying daily low, high and        average energy consumption.    -   Monthly cost reports displaying daily low, high and average        energy costs.    -   Monthly consumption reports displaying daily energy consumption        and costs.    -   Yearly consumption and cost reports displaying monthly energy        consumption and cost.

In another aspect of the present invention, the customer may also viewinformation related to Power Supply Programs. For example, the customermay generate or view a report detailing the PROGRAMS offered by theutility 1.06. Additionally, the customer may select the PROGRAMS inwhich they choose to participate.

Using the user interface 1.14, the customer may have access to theiraccount and home attributes. For example, the customer may be able toview and modify various parameters associated with their user profile.Such parameters may include name, address, home, work and mobile phonenumbers, primary and secondary E-mail addresses, password (modify only)and password reminder, and/or budget thresholds. Furthermore, thecustomer may be able to view and modify various parameters associatedwith the thermostat 1.30D and HVAC system. Such parameters may includethermostat name, heating type and stages, cooling type and stages, andSafety, alarm, heat and cool limits.

Using the user interface 1.14, the customer may also be able to view andmodify various parameters associated with any metered and controlleddevices. Such parameters may include, e.g., the device name anddescription.

Using the user interface 1.14, the customer may also be able to view andmodify various parameters associated with their home. Such parametersmay include age and size, construction characteristics, water heatercapacity and type(s), and energy related home accessories.

When the system 1.02 activates a PROGRAM (either automatically or via amanual activation), a supply request is broadcast. The supply requestmay include a Curtailment ID, a Utility ID sub-string, Device TypeIdentifiers of the devices that are to contribute, a transactionidentifier, and time elements indicating start time and duration. In oneembodiment, the supply request is sent to all gateway nodes 1.10D andother nodes 1.10 and may be repeated to ensure that all of the gateways1.10D and other nodes 1.10 will receive the request. Each gateway 1.10Dand other nodes 1.10 receive the request and when the start time occurs,begin a Supply Request transaction.

In one embodiment, the gateway node 1.10D takes a whole-house meterreading (demand and consumption) and reports back to the system 1.02that it has received the request and is participating. In theillustrated embodiment, every message includes the Curtailment ID sothat the system 1.02 can collect all of the responses to the supplyrequest and provide accurate analysis and billing/crediting informationfor the activated PROGRAM.

The gateway node 1.10D and other nodes 1.10 then proceeds to control thespecified devices 1.08 and report the status of each device 1.08 back tothe system 1.02 as they are processed.

Devices 1.08 that are currently drawing power report the total wattscontributed and then proceed to open the relay for controlled devices1.08B and/or controlled and metered device 1.08C. If a controlled device1.08B is being used, an associated power rating may be used for thecontributed power value. A controlled device 1.08 may be eithershut-off, i.e., power cut off, or controlled to some predeterminedstate, e.g., a heating/cooling offset may be set to a maximum value fora HVAC system (see below).

Devices 1.08 that are not currently drawing power will report zero wattscontributed and leave the relay closed. With the relay closed, once thedevice 1.08 starts to draw power, the gateway node 1.10D will measureits demand and then open the relay and then measure and report itscontribution.

In one embodiment, a device's 1.08 contribution is equal to the powerconsumption rate prior to activation of the program for the time periodof the PROGRAM, i.e., the amount of energy being saved.

If the device 1.08 is an HVAC system, adjusting the setpoint may notguarantee that the system may not run at all. If the HVAC is notrunning, its supply contribution message is reported as zero. Thesetpoints are offset and the temperature is monitored. When thetemperature exceeds the appropriate heating or cooling original setpoint(prior to the offset change), the gateway node 1.10D may indicate whatthe contribution is. This represents when the equipment would have comeon without the curtailment. By adjusting the setpoint of the thermostat1.30D, the actual consumption of the HVAC system should reduce as aresult of a higher setpoint for heating or cooling being established.The actual usage for a particular setpoint for a site 1.04 may, overtime, be known and/or sampled and the offsets can then be computed andverified as needed to ensure that the reductions that are calculated arecorrect. The system 1.02 can thus measure the shorter and less frequentcycling of the HVAC system to create an overall energy savings amount.For example, if the unit consumes 5 kwh set at 72 and used 4.6 kwh setat 76 then the savings is 0.4 kwh per hour.

At the end of the Supply Request period, the gateway node 1.10D willre-enable the devices 1.08 and report a completion message to the system1.02 that includes the whole house demand data and total consumptiondata. For the thermostat or thermostat devices, a reverse ramp caninitiate to reduce the potential of creating a peak demand at the end ofa curtailment or control period. This reverse ramp could include therestriction of secondary compressor stages as well as heat stripsdepending on the mode (heating or cooling) that the thermostat is in.

The system 1.02 may also send a supply request cancel message to abortthe PROGRAM. When a supply request cancel message is received, thegateway node 1.10D will perform as if the time has expired and performedall necessary clean-up, wrap-up and reporting as described above.

In addition to reporting individual demand contributed by each device1.08 during the PROGRAM, the gateway node 1.10D may also send the totaldemand generated for all devices 1.08 for the PROGRAM to the system1.02.

In another aspect of the present invention, the gateway node 1.10D mayreceive a utility generated scheduled supply request. The gateway node1.10D may be responsible for administering the PROGRAM within customersite 1.04. For example, the gateway node 1.10D may accept or downloadscheduled PROGRAMS from the system 1.02 in advance of the scheduledoperation. The gateway node 1.10D may then monitor and control theaffected devices 1.08 to carry out the PROGRAM.

During the PROGRAM, the gateway node 1.08D may report the electricaldemand generated by each device 1.08 in the PROGRAM.

The gateway node 1.10D may also receive occupant device schedules fromthe system. Device schedules apply to customer devices 1.08 such aswater heater, pool pump, hot tub and spas. The gateway node 1.10D maythen be responsible for administering the device schedules within thecustomer site. The device schedules may be received by the gateway node1.10D in advance of the scheduled operation. Then the gateway node 1.10Dmay monitor and control the affected devices 1.08 per the downloadeddevice schedules.

In another aspect of the present invention, if the gateway node 1.10Dloses communications with the system 1.02 for a predetermined time, thegateway node 1.10D can re-enable devices 1.08 (water heater, pool pump,hot tub and spa). Note that the gateway node may have multiple days,e.g., three days, of schedules available. Water heaters can fall back toan operational mode, however, pool pump, spas, hot tubs and irrigationand well pumps may not. These latter devices may have to be cycled basedon some programmed interval like, for example, 8 hours a day. Otherdevices 1.08 like an irrigation pump could not simply default to “on” orit may start and never stop. The ability to receive and run schedules isnot limited to the gateway node 1.10D. Depending on the systemimplementation requirements, schedules, cycle run times and otheroperational commands may be downloaded to the control nodes 1.10 whichwill operate independently their individual schedules. This capabilityis designed to permit normal operation of the site 1.04 should thegateway node 1.10D fail or communications are lost between the gatewaynode 1.10D and the control node 1.10.

With reference to FIG. 3A, the thermostat 1.30D in one embodiment, is awall mounted device which has a control panel 3.02 with a display screen3.04 and a plurality of input buttons 3.06. In the illustratedembodiment, the input buttons 3.06 includes a system button 3.06A, a fanbutton 3.06B, an occupancy button 3.06C, and a hold/resume button 3.06D.The input buttons 3.06 further include an first control button 3.06E anda second control button 30.6F.

Using the input buttons, the customer can control the HVAC system andother parts of the system 1.02 (see below). The thermostat 1.30D is incommunication with the gateway node 1.10D (see above) and the gatewaynode 1.10D can query the current temperature and setpoint values of thethermostat 1.30D. Further, the gateway node 1.10D can change the heatingand cooling setpoint(s) and offset values of the thermostat 1.30D (seebelow).

In one aspect of the present invention, the thermostat 1.30D may informthe gateway node 1.10D when its relay outputs or contact inputs changestate, or the gateway node 1.10D can poll for this status. When thisoccurs, the gateway node 1.10D can query the thermostat 1.30D and sendthe current temperature and corresponding input or output status to thesystem 1.02.

The thermostat 1.30D may operate in a fallback mode upon loss ofcommunication with the gateway node 1.10D. When communication resumes,the gateway node 1.10D can ascertain the state of the thermostat 1.30Dand restore the desired functionality.

All changes made at the thermostat 1.30D can be communicated to thegateway node 1.10D or be received during a poll of the thermostat 1.30D.In one embodiment, the following functions can be accessible directlyfrom the thermostat 1.30D:

-   -   View current temperature.    -   View current heating or cooling setpoint.    -   Override heating and cooling setpoints.    -   Resume scheduled heating and cooling setpoints.    -   View Heat/Cool/Auto mode.    -   Change Heat/Cool/Auto mode.    -   Activate/deactivate the fan.

As discussed above, load control nodes 1.10C provide two primaryfunctions: 1) measure power consumption and instantaneous demand of anattached load and 2) control the load. In one embodiment, the loadcontrol node 1.10C includes a means, e.g., one or more means (see below)to allow the attached load to be connected or disconnected from mainpower. Alternatively, the load control node 1.10C may be integratedand/or coupled to a controller of the load for control of its functions.

In one embodiment, the load control node 1.10C may disconnect the loadwhen a supply request command is received from the gateway node 1.10Dand reconnect the load when a cancel supply request command is receivedfrom the gateway node 1.10D. The load control node 1.10C may furtherprovide status information, e.g., state of load control means, when astatus request command is received from the gateway.

In one aspect of the present invention, a load metering node 1.10A iscoupled to a site's electric meter 1.30A. The load metering node 1.10Amay accumulate time stamped cumulative consumption (kWh) data over apredetermined period, e.g., 15 or 20 minute time periods and be capableof storing up to a predetermined period of time's worth of data, e.g.,10 days.

The load metering node 1.10A is in communication with the gateway node1.10D. The gateway 1.10D may query current accumulated consumption (kWh)from the meter 1.30A and/or “instantaneous” load measurement (kW) fromthe meter on request. “Instantaneous” can be determined by thecapabilities of the meter. The gateway node 1.10D can query the15-minute interval data. Data values can be returned with a timestamp.

2. Nodes

With specific reference to FIGS. 2A, 2B, 2C and 2D, the interaction withthe devices 1.08 located at the customer site 1.04 is the node 1.10. Thenodes 1.10 permit the system 1.02 to focus on the entire supply chain,from well head production and generation to the end consumption point.The nodes 1.10 are designed to give every energy-consuming device 1.08the ability to intercommunicate with the entire supply chain ifnecessary and utilizes supply and demand balancing control logic, toimprove the operational efficiency of end point devices 1.08, groups ofend-point devices and the entire supply chain. This is accomplished bygiving each end-point knowledge about the current demand on the entiresupply chain coupled with the ability to alter its operation to assistin managing and balancing the overall demand on the delivery system.This information exchange is accomplished over an always on broadband,high-speed, point-to-point, point to multipoint or mesh network (seeabove).

Energy consuming devices 1.08 within a customer site 1.04 may havevarying levels of operational intelligence. Appliances and other utilityconsuming devices 1.08 range from super energy efficient refrigerationunits with embedded micro processor controls to dumb devices like waterheaters and pool pumps which simply operate in an on or off state usingsensors or timers to control their operational state. The nodes 1.10provide an entirely new level of intelligence to each end device 1.08and are designed to be modular in nature so as not to burden the endpoint control with more features or functions than it needs.

Nodes 1.10 may be designed to retrofit existing devices 1.08, as well asbe fully integrated into the end point at the time of manufacture of adevice 1.08.

In one embodiment, there are three types of nodes 1.10: a load meteringnode 1.10A, a control node 1.10B, and a load control node 1.10C, as wellas the gateway node 1.10D. Each type of node 1.10 has common basicfeatures as well as optional sub modules such as Interfaces, Metering orControl modules (see below).

The nodes 1.10 are designed to increase the operational efficiency ofeven the most intelligent end use device 1.08 by giving it knowledge ofthe entire “utility” supply chain that it is connected to, making itpossible for the end use device 1.08 to perform its given function moreefficiently and economically.

As shown, each node 1.10 includes a node processor 2.02. In oneembodiment, the node processor 2.02 is a microprocessor. The node 1.10also includes a memory device 2.04, such as non-volatile memory, forstoring program and other data, as needed. Each node 1.10 also includesa two-way communications 2.06 channel for communicating with othercomponents in the system 1.02. The communications channel 2.06 may beeither a hardwired or a wireless system. Any suitable communicationsmeans may be used to communicate with the intended device. For example,the two way communications channel 2.06 may provide a means tocommunicate with other nodes 1.10 or a programming device 2.08. Theprogramming device 2.08 may be used either at the site of manufacturingof the node 1.10 or onsite to configure and/or program the node 1.10. Inone embodiment, the programming device 2.08 is coupled to the node 1.10through a communications port (not shown). The two way communicationschannel 2.06 may also provide communication to the gateway node 1.10Dand/or the other nodes 1.10A,1.10B,1.10C. The nodes 1.10 may beconnected in a network by the two way communications channel 2.06. Thenetwork may either be a wired, wireless, or a combined network.

In one aspect of the present invention, the nodes 1.10 provide thesystem 1.02 with the ability to monitor and control the operation of onsite distributed generation resources, such as a photovoltaic system(not shown). This permits the system 1.02 to dispatch on site capacitywhen the demand and economics are favorable or the demand exceeds thesupply creating an energy shortage. The system 1.02 may do this inconjunction with any other utility resource such as natural gas orpropane that might be used to power the a device 1.08. This ability isfurther enhanced by a node's 1.10 ability to communicate with aplurality of other similar nodes 1.10 or any other control, monitoring,configuration or management node attached directly or indirectly to thesystem 1.02 making it possible for individual nodes 1.10 to jointlyshare the energy management process among many devices 1.08 using aunique set of decision criteria to maintain the operation integrity ofthe customer site 1.04 or any other sphere of control, e.g., a pluralityof nodes 1.10 across multiple sites, while managing total demand, theeconomics of the operation and the end use devices.

In another aspect of the present invention, the system 1.02 permitscommunications outside the customer site 1.04, permitting individualnodes 1.10 or a plurality of nodes 1.10 in aggregation tointercommunicate with other control points which might include, but arenot limited to, utility companies, energy suppliers, other sites orgroups of sites, other sites or points of operation under the sameownership, energy and utility brokers, energy and utility serviceproviders, independent power and utility producers, distribution substations, transmission sub stations, Gas and Water well operator and anyother point of control or management or service organization associatedwith the site 1.04, the end point device or the “utility” deliverynetwork servicing it.

As discussed above, each node 1.10 includes a two way communicationschannel 2.06, which permits the node 1.10 to intercommunicate with anyother point or points within the system 1.02. This intercommunicationmay occur with any other point within the system 1.02 and may be, but isnot limited to, another associated Node 1.10, a control aggregationpoint or an outside point like an energy or utility supply pointassociated with the customer site 1.03 or a control configuration,monitoring or management point. The system 1.02 interconnects eitherdirectly or indirectly a plurality of nodes 1.10 and related supply,monitoring, configuration and management points to create a secureubiquitous communications channel over which broadcast, point to point,mesh and point to multipoint communications can occur as well as anyother communications necessary to perform the energy managementfunction. Because of the plurality of communications protocols andphysical media over which data communications can occur, nodes 1.10 mayhave multiple Two Way Communications Channels, permitting the best mediaand protocols to be implemented to achieve the desired end result.

With specific reference to FIG. 2B, an exemplary load metering node1.10A is shown. As discussed above, the load metering node 1.10Ameasures the instantaneous power being delivered to the metered device1.08A and may also determine the total power delivered to the metereddevice 1.08A over a predetermined time period, e.g., 15 or 20 minutes.The load metering node 1.10A includes a metering module 2.10 which iscoupled to the metered device 1.08A for measuring power delivered to themetered device 1.08A. This information is relayed through the gatewaynode 1.10D over the two way communications channel 2.06 to the utilitycontrol system 1.12. In one embodiment, the metering module 2.10includes a metering processor and memory for calculating and storingpower data, such as accumulated power consumption.

In one embodiment, the metering module 2.10 includes means, such as oneor more current transformers, for measuring power delivered to (or from)the associated device 1.08.

With specific reference to FIG. 2C, an exemplary control node 1.10B isshown. As discussed above, the control node 1.10B is used to control thecontrolled device 1.08. In the illustrated embodiment, the control node1.10B is coupled to the controlled device 1.08B by a controlled devicecommunications channel 2.12. In one embodiment, the control node 1.10includes one or more relays (not shown) for connecting and disconnectingthe controlled device 1.08B from power. In another embodiment, thecontrol node 1.10 is interconnected to the controlled device's 1.08Bonboard controls. In this embodiment, the control node 1.10B directlycontrols the operation of the controlled device 1.08B.

With specific reference to FIG. 2D, an exemplary load control node 1.10Cis shown. As discussed above, the load control node 1.10C performs boththe metering function of the load metering node 1.10A and the controlnode 1.10B. Thus, the load control node 1.10C includes both the meteringmodule 2.10 and the controlled device communications channel 2.12.

As discussed above, each node 1.10, in its simplest form includes aprocessor 2.02 and a memory device 2.04 within which control logicresides and runs. This control logic, processor 2.02 and memory 2.04provide the node 1.10 with the necessary control intelligence to manageits associated load or generation resource as a stand-alone point or inconjunction with a plurality of other nodes 1.10 locations as well asmanage communications over the controlled device communications channel2.12 (for control and load control nodes 1.10B, 1.10C) and over the twoway communications channel 2.06.

In one aspect of the present invention, the gateway node 1.10D acts as acentral control node, providing intercommunications between the othernodes 1.10 at the customer site 1.04.

In another aspect of the present invention, a plurality of nodes 1.10,which may be located at a single customer site 1.04 or across multiplesites 1.04, may be grouped for a specific purpose, e.g., control of allpool pumps in a defined geographic region or all pool pumps in a PROGRAMin a defined geographic region. For the plurality of nodes 1.10, asingle node, which may be a gateway node 1.10D, may be chosen as thecentral control node.

In one embodiment of the present invention, the processor 2.02 andcontrol logic provide the node 1.10 with the ability to sense what itscurrent state of operation should be, based on commands received fromthe central control node or gateway node 1.10D, either within thecustomer site 1.04 or within the aggregation control sphere of thecentral control Node, and would manage the associated devices 1.08 basedon this control state. Each node 1.10 may also report back the status ofthe associated device 1.08, their energy usage or other utilityconsumption rate (based on measurement from the metering module 2.10),to the assigned central control node 1.10.

Under this configuration, the nodes 1.10 may be cascaded from thecentral master control point down to the lowest level of control at anend point within the system 1.02 using, but not limited to, a tree andbranch or star network, however deep the architecture dictates, toachieve the level of control desired. Each sub level of control wouldreceive control parameters or commands from its subsequent higher levelnode 1.10 and would either directly control loads attached to it orcommand nodes 1.10 subordinate to it, to achieve the desired control ormanagement state. Through cascading control functions into a chain ofcommand, higher level nodes 1.10 can more effectively manage a pluralityof devices 1.08 without encountering scaling limitations usuallyassociated with automation control systems managing a plurality of loadsfrom a central processor. By the nature of its design, the node 1.10operating in a cascading control network as described above would not belimited or fixed in its structure and nodes 1.10 could migratedynamically from one “group” to another or move up or down in thecascade structure to permit different control spheres and algorithms.This unique architecture permits each node 1.10 to have a customizedprocess control program and data collection criteria allowing its levelof control and interaction with its associated load or generationcapacity to be designed to meet the management control programobjectives.

In addition, the process is further enhanced if the load or generationpoint under the control of the control or load control node 1.10B, 1.10Chas its own operational control processor (not shown) which isinterconnected with the node 1.10B, 1.10C over the controlled devicecommunications channel 2.12 to provide operational state and controlcommands, run diagnostics and tests, operational health and performancedata, and alarm conditions. Data from the controlled or controlled andmetered device 1.08B, 1.08C being accessible to other nodes 1.10 orcontrol or monitoring or measurement nodes associated with the system1.02 for either direct use or transfer to nodes external to the network,through whatever data transfer means are most suitable for the data typeand priority level.

With reference to FIGS. 2C and 2D, to manage the operation of basicconsumption points like pumps, motors or heating elements that aretypically thermostatic, valve or relay controlled, the control node orload control node 1.10B, 1.10C may include a mains coupler 2.14 whichpermits the control node 1.10B or load control node 1.10C to attach ordisconnect the load or generation capacity to the mains or distributionnetwork for the “utility” product used or generated by the end device1.08B, 1.08C.

In another embodiment of the present invention, the node control logicor program would be capable of receiving and processing data independentof specific controls from a central control point and at a minimum wouldmonitor and control the operation of its associated load or generationcapacity based on, but not limited to: the demand for the utilityproduct, cost of the utility product, congestion levels on the deliverysystem and/or their associated cost, for electricity it would at aminimum, but not be limited to, monitoring demand, usage, sign wavefrequency, voltage, and for other utilities such as, but not limited to,gas, steam or water, it would, but not be limited to, measuring linepressure, ambient temperature and any other factors and determine thebest operating mode for its associated load or generation resource.Using parameters from a plurality of measurement, monitoring and controlpoints associated with the utility delivery system, available to allnodes on the network, the node 1.10 would manage its associatedconsumption or generation demand and load on the “utility” deliverysystem in accordance with control parameters governing its operation,supplied to it through a control point configuration interface 2.16 andreport any and all operational data, status and conditions back to oneor multiple associated measurement, monitoring and control points asconfigured through the control point configuration interface 2.16. Oneexample of a control point configuration interface 2.16 is an inputtouch screen located on a device 1.08.

In both the simplest form or the enhanced implementation above or anyother combination of nodes 1.10 and control points, the individual nodes1.10 are capable of controlling the operation of the associated load orgeneration capacity to shift, reduce or cap demand on the deliverysystem or in the case of generation to dispatch the available capacityto help meet the demand and ensure the integrity and reliability of thedelivery system. Based on triggering parameters, which include but arenot limited to: the time of day, the total demand on the deliverysystem, the real time cost of the utility, the full weighted cost ofdelivery including congestion charges, the minimum operatingcharacteristics of the associated load or generation source, the totaldemand for the site 1.04, the total demand for the individual nodes 1.10within an aggregate group, externalities like weather factors and thehistorical usage and demand patterns of the individual node 1.10 and/orits aggregate group of nodes 1.10, individual nodes 1.10 will determinetheir optimum operating characteristics and will operate theirassociated load or generation resource to improve those operational andperformance characteristics.

As discussed above in one embodiment of the present invention, the loadmetering, control and load control nodes 1.10A, 1.10B, 1.10C communicatewith the gateway node 1.10D through a wireless or radio frequencycommunications link. With reference to FIG. 1D, when a node 1.10A,1.10B, 1.10C comes online or powers up, including initial power up whenthe node 1.10A, 1.10B, 1.10C is being added to the system 1.02, aninitialization process 1.32 must be performed. In first step 1.32A, thegateway node 1.10D emits a beaconing signal. Generally, the gateway node1.10D continually emits the beaconing signal. In a second step 1.32B,the node 1.10A, 1.10B, 1.10C receives the beaconing signal andresponsively generates a response signal. In a third step 1.32C, thenode being initialized 1.10A, 1.10B, 1.10C joins the network of nodes1.10A, 1.10B, 1.1C through a handshaking routine between the gatewaynode 1.10D and the node being initialized 1.10A, 1.10B, 1.10C.

In another aspect of the present invention, the control and load controlnodes 1.10B, 1.10C are connected to the whole distribution channel up tothe utility 1.06. The control and load control nodes 1.10B, 1.10C mayreceive data, control parameters, and PROGRAM schedules through and/orfrom the gateway node 1.10D. Based on the received data, controlparameters and/or schedules, the control and load control nodes 1.10B,1.10C may control operation of the associated device 1.08.

With reference to FIG. 2E, an example of the system 1.02 applied to aspecific customer site, i.e., a residence or home 2.18 will be used toillustrate several functions of the system 1.02. In the illustratedembodiment, the home 2.18 includes eight nodes 2.20 coupled to eightdevices 2.22.

A load metering node 2.20A is coupled to a whole house meter 2.22A. Thewhole house meter 2.22A could be associated with revenue grade power(electricity), gas or water. However for purposes of illustration, thewhole house meter 2.22A is associated with electricity delivered to thehome 2.18. The load metering node 2.20A monitors and reports the totalhouse consumption of electricity. The load metering node 2.20A measuresand reports total consumption as well as instantaneous demand andrecords and report consumption in total. Furthermore, the load meteringnode 2.20A may store interval data in non-volatile memory (see above) inaccordance with industry standards and system management requirementsfor the entire home to other control nodes 2.20 within the home 2.18and/or any other node associated with its aggregation group, thedelivery supply chain or any other node needing or authorized to receiveor access it.

In addition, the home 2.18 has first and second load control nodes2.20B, 2.20C associated with its heating and air conditioning systemsone controlling the main living space, i.e., the 1^(st) floor HVACsystem 2.22B and the other controlling the second floor bedroom space,i.e., the 2^(nd) floor HVAC system 2.22C.

Third, fourth and fifth load control nodes 2.20D, 2.20E, 2.20F areassociated with a refrigerator/freezer 2.22D, an electric water heater2.22E, and a well pump (for yard irrigation) 2.22F, respectively. Sixthand seventh load control nodes 2.20G, 2.20H are associated with a roofmounted photovoltaic system 2.22G (comprised of a storage battery bankand inverter capable of generating 2500 watts of 240 v 60 hz A/C powerfor up to 12 hours) and a dishwasher 2.22H.

While the system 1.02 will work with any “utility” provided product suchas, but not limited to, gas, water, electric or steam, for ease ofillustration electricity is the only utility product being used in thisexample. Each node 2.20 in this example has control parameters stored inits associated memory, which the control program for the node 2.20 usesto determine the optimum operating characteristics for the management ofits associated load or generation capacity.

In one embodiment of the present invention, a gateway node 2.24 may beutilized to aggregate the premise nodes 2.20 and consolidate thecommunications process and/or control processes with upper level nodes2.20 or any other nodes directly or indirectly in the system 1.02.

The nodes are connected in a network (as described above), but mayoperate autonomously or require direct commands to change theiroperational state. In one embodiment, the nodes 2.20 include basic logicso that if the node 2.20 is severed from the network eitherintentionally or by accident, the node 2.20 will continue to performtheir management and monitoring functions to optimize their attachedloads performance based on the last known condition of their associatedutility supply chain.

In its simplest form, the home 2.18, may participate in any number ofconservation or demand limiting programs, i.e., Power Saving Programs orPROGRAMS. The following illustrated how the nodes 2.20 may support thesePROGRAMS. However, the following should not be interpreted to limit thepresent invention to any such PROGRAM.

By its nature of having a processor 2.02, memory 2.04, metering module2.10, mains coupler 2.14, controlled device communications channel 2.12,two way communications channels 2.06, control point configurationinterface 2.16 and the ability to communicate with and coordinateoperational and load management processes among a plurality of endpoints, the node 2.20 may be programmed and configured to perform aplurality of control and interface functions and is not limited orconstrained in its ability.

For example, the nodes 2.20 may be configured in a Load Limit or LoadCap Program. The term load limit or load cap may be interpreted in thisexample to mean a limit or cap on either the KW demand or the total costof operation making this example either a physical energy usage oreconomic control process. Because of the optional metering capability ofeach node 2.20 and its ability to receive economic data from the supplychain serving it, the node 2.20 is capable of making decisions based onits rate of consumption as well as the cost it is incurring at any pointin time.

Under a Load Limit or Load Cap Program, the customer would commit tomaintain their total demand for any “utility” supplied product to amaximum demand level under an agreement with the supplier. Under such aProgram the customer would be subject to a billing rate, which increasesas the total demand for the product, increases. As a result, thecustomer that manages to maintain their demand in a flat pattern wouldhave a much lower overall rate per unit of “utility” product consumedthan one that had erratic usage patterns of peaks and valleys. Thereasoning for such a program is that suppliers of “utility” productsmust commit to meet all demands on their system and therefore theyreward consumers with consistent, managed consumption patterns withlower rates, because to meet their needs they do not have to havemaintain large reserve margins. On the opposite side of the scale, theycharge higher “demand charges” to those who do not manage their loads.As a result, customers can lower their costs by maintaining a consistentand flat load profile.

In our example, it will be assumed that the customer has agreed upon amaximum demand of 5,000 watts or 5 kw with its supplier, the utility. Asmentioned earlier, this demand could just as easily have been afinancial limit based on the fully loaded cost of delivering the utilityproduct to the point of consumption and may be set by the owner,customer or any other entity associated with the site 1.04 wishing tomaintain cost control over the utility product.

The gateway node 2.24 acts as the gatekeeper for usage and monitors andreports on the consumption and demand for energy at the whole premiselevel. The gateway node 2.24 could be, but is not limited to, a singlepoint node dedicated to just this site 1.04 as part of a tree and branchcontrol configuration or it could be a node which is part of anaggregate group of homes in a star network. By its nature, the gatewaynode 2.24 will monitor and store consumption and demand information andreport it to other nodes 2.20 in the network within the home 2.18, aswell as nodes outside the home 2.18 such as a central control node forthe home 2.18 or aggregation group, energy providers, energy brokers,energy service providers, ISO's and other authorized agents. As thetotal demand for the home 2.18 approaches the agreed upon energyconsumption limit of 5 kw, the rate of consumption data flowing from thegateway node 2.24 over the two way communications channels 2.06 would bereceived at a minimum by either the individual nodes 2.20 within thehome 2.18 or by a central aggregation node in more elaborateimplementations. Based on parameters provided to each node 2.20 throughthe control point configuration interface 2.16 or master control nodeparameters provided to an aggregation control node through the controlpoint configuration interface 2.16 the load reduction, shifting andmanagement process would be initiated. Based on the amount of loadreduction needed, different levels of action may be taken to reduce thetotal demand utilizing priority shedding parameters which would resultin the least important load in the group to perform a reduction functionif operating and report the results followed by the subsequently higherlevels within the group until the total demand for the site 1.04 wasreduced to an acceptable level. The reverse process may initiate as thetotal load of the site 1.04 dropped below known levels of individualload consumption rates permitting previously shed or reduced loads toresume normal operation without exceeding the agreed upon demand cap. Inaddition, any device 2.22 which was shed due to its low priority in thedemand prioritization scheme could increase its priority based on itsminimum operating control parameters and cause its priority to beincrease to a point that it will force a once higher priority load tobecome subordinate to it and thus swap its shed status with a device2.22 of equal or greater load value to meet its minimum operationalrequirements.

This simplistic example is only to illustrate how a simple loadreduction might be accomplished using the node 2.20. In this example,the stored energy available in the photovoltaic system's 2.22G storagebatteries would most likely be dispatched first to offset the use ofgrid provided energy to meet the site's 1.04 energy needs versusshedding load if sufficient stored energy was available. To completethis example, the actions performed at each of the nodes 2.20 in thehome 2.18 will now be examined individually. It should be noted thatcontrol can exist at the individual node level as illustrated by thisexample or could exist at the aggregation node level or at any highlevel in the overall node cascade depending on the deploymentarchitecture and node processor control programming and controlparameters chosen by the implementer.

The first and second load control nodes 2.20B, 2.20C for the HVACsystems 2.22B,2.22C monitor and control the operation of compressors andresistive heating elements to maintain the indoor temperature. It alsohas the ability to intercommunicate with the HVAC systems 2.22B, 2.22Cdirectly and control the temperature settings as well as have directcontrol over multi speed compressors and emergency heat strip operationsusing the controlled device communications channel 2.12 if thethermostatic control unit of the home 2.18 has a communicationsinterface. This communications channel 2.12 also permits it to report onthe systems' 2.22B, 2.22C operational characteristics and contact thecustomer, outside service providers or the manufacturer if any segmentof the HVAC systems 2.22B, 2.22C malfunction using the two waycommunications channels 2.06 either directly or through a cascade ofnodes 2.20. The load control nodes 2.20B, 2.20C for the HVAC systems2.22B, 2.22C would utilize the metering modules 2.10 to monitor andreport on the systems 2.22B, 2.22C rate of consumption of utility energyunits but would not need the mains coupler 2.14 if it was managing thesystems 2.22B, 2.22C operation through the controlled devicecommunications channel 2.12. Depending on the total demand for energyunits of the home 2.18, the node 2.20 may have the ability to manage thetemperature within the home 2.18 based on customer's supplied parameterssupplied through the control point configuration interface 2.16 to causethe HVAC systems 2.22B, 2.22C to reduce total demand and could based ona priority setting maintain separate control parameter for each HVACsystem 2.22B, 2.22C depending on the time of day and occupancy status.To further enhance its operation efficiency, the load control node2.20B, 2.20C associated with each HVAC system 2.22B, 2.22C may suppressthe operation of secondary compressor operating stages and restrict theuse of emergency resistive heat strips provided that the temperaturerecovery within the site 1.04 was progressing at a satisfactory rate.This capability permits the system 1.02 to operate at standardefficiency when the supply and associated cost of energy is low whilegreatly improving the operational efficiency of the system 2.22B, 2.22Cwhen the supply and associated cost of energy is high. Using a pluralityof optional parameters supplied by the customer, the energy provider andthe gateway node 2.24, the system 2.22B, 2.22C would be capable ofdetermining which mode of operation it should be implementing andcontrol the overall consumption of the HVAC system 2.22B, 2.22C toachieve the desired consumption goal. By varying the operationalparameter for the control of the system, the load control node 2.20B,2.20C may choose, but not be limited to, selecting a higher level oncomfort over cost; vary the rate of temperature change differently basedon cost and occupancy status; totally restrict the operation ofsecondary states of compressor operation or emergency heat strips basedon energy supplier critical load level signals or total premiseconsumption cap level attainment; modify the temperature setting orsuspend the systems' 2.22B, 2.22C operation for a specified period oftime under energy supplier critical load situations or total premiseconsumption cap level attainment; alternately cycle multiple units in asite 1.04 to avoid multiple units operating simultaneously; performpre-cooling or pre-heating prior to higher pricing or demand periodsbeing in effect; perform smooth and gradual temperature change settingin periods of moderate increased demand or price and more radicaltemperature change setting in periods of rapid increased demand orprice; over-ride all controls and operate as normal causing other nodes2.20 to carry the full burden of any load reductions necessary; ceaseoperation until the indoor environmental condition reaches a parameterset maximum critical level or any other action programmed into the node2.20B, 2.20C. This and other combinations of load curtailment andcontrol negotiated between the nodes 2.20 in the home 2.18 oraggregation control group are monitored and reported by the centralcontrol point or the gateway node 2.24 to alert nodes within the home2.18 or aggregation group of the total load level, demand, cost ofenergy and delivery, congestion costs and other related controlparameter triggers.

The third load control node 2.20D for the refrigerator/freezer 2.22Dmonitors consumption of the refrigerator/freezer 2.22D using themetering module 2.10 and also communicates directly with the processorcontrols of the refrigerator/freezer 2.22D using the controlled devicecommunications channel 2.12 to determine the operational status of therefrigerator/freezer 2.22D and to provide over-ride controls for normaldefault functions like defrost cycles when they might be delayed toreduce overall demand. This communications channel 2.12 also permits thethird load control node 2.20D to report on the refrigerator/freezer's2.22D operational characteristics and contact outside service providersor the manufacturer if it malfunctions using the two way communicationschannels.

The fourth load control node 2.20E for the water heater 2.22E monitorsand reports on consumption and demand for the water heater 2.22E usingthe metering module 2.10 and also has the ability to directly controlwhen the water heater 2.22E is connected to the utility supply chain ornot through the use of the mains coupler 2.14 which permits the fourthload control node 2.20E to connect or disconnect it from the utilitysupply. In more elaborate implementations the fourth load control node2.20E may use the controlled device communications channel 2.12 and themetering module 2.10 to monitor the rate of water usage, the input watertemperature and the stored water temperature available within the waterheater 2.22E. These advanced features add intelligence to the process ofwater heating improving the operational efficiency of the water heatingprocess and improving the energy demand pattern for the water heater2.22E. If so equipped, the water heater 2.22E may be interconnected to aheat recovery system of the HVAC system 2.22B, 2.22C and if demand forheating water can be accomplished through the heat recovery systemversus energizing the heating elements within the water heater directly,the nodes 2.20 of these devices 2.22 or a central control node for thehome 2.18 would coordinate and execute that collaborative action thusreducing the total demand for the home 2.18

At this point it should be noted that water heaters can be recharged inmultiple ways using either waste heat from a heat or fuel cell or otheron site generation unit. More advanced water heating systems in thesouth would benefit from using solar panels in conjunction with otherforms of regeneration to eliminate any load on the energy deliverysystem. It is important to note that in the case of solar panels andpropane the supply chain is limited to the premise geography but wouldbe effected by the weather in the case of solar and by the market pricefor propane. In the case of propane other factors like the quantity onhand and the lead time to schedule a refill by the provider balancedagainst the projected quantity of propone the site 1.04 will consumebetween the current time and predicted refill schedule time all must befactored into alternative fuel usage as part of the supply chainbalancing logic.

The fifth load control node 2.20F for the well pump 2.22F has directcontrol over the operation of the well pump 2.22F and operates the wellpump 2.22F based on parameters supplied to it through the control pointconfiguration interface 2.16. The parameters may include the run timerequirements and preferred times of operation, established by thecustomer as well as network node updates, which could include weatherinformation relating to local precipitation. Sensor input could bepresent using the local communications channel (controlled devicecommunications channel 2.12), which could provide precipitation input orground moisture content. It is important to note at this point that thecontrolled device communications channel 2.12 may be used to not onlycommunicate with other node processor 2.02 embedded into associatedloads or generation, but also has the ability to interface with analogto digital processors or devices or any other form of communicatingsensor or node to supply inputs to the node 2.20F. This channel 2.12enhances the operational control logic for items like pumps that have noembedded process controllers or sensors. In a similar fashion however,this communications channel and communicating sensors can be used inconjunction with embedded process controllers to enhance their operationand performance to even greater levels where practical.

On site generation, while not prevalent today, is being promoted byState and Federal regulatory agencies, utilities, DOE and othersconcerned with maintaining a high level of reliability and integrity inthe electric delivery systems. In particular, renewable generationresources are being promoted, as they have no environmental impact anddo not consume any natural resources. Solar and wind generation are themost common of these power generation resources. Due to the relativelylow capacity output of solar and wind generation systems, to beeffective in offsetting peak demands for power, they must have anassociated storage system into which they can stockpile power inrelatively low input quantities and then retrieve it in bulk whennecessary. The most common form of bulk power storage today are wetcell, deep cycle, active glass mat, lead acid batteries, which can beconnected in parallel and series to create an electric storage facilityof virtually any capacity and voltage. Great improvements have been madeover the years in battery and inverter/charger technology. Companieslike Hart, Signwave, Balmar and Trace are leaders in the batterycharger/inverter market. By using embedded processors, sensors and solidstate power converters, these companies have systems which can store DCpower into battery storage systems at 12, 24, 36 and 48 volts and thenretrieve it on demand and convert it to 120v or 240v AC power at 60 hzwith utility quality and reliability. Companies like Trace alreadymanufacture and market Inverter systems that manage photovoltaic arraysattached to battery storage systems that not only can be used to supplyor supplement the needs of a residential home, but can safely sync andconnect to the utility grid and sell power back to the utility at levelsand for time periods specified by the owner.

While photovoltaic systems have come a long way in the past 15 years,they are limited in their energy management capability and need theaddition of the invention to manage the storage and conversion processfrom DC to AC to make them part of a fully integrated energy managementsystem. The load control node 2.20G with its ability to communicate withother nodes 2.20, sharing load and control data and managing demandwithin a site 1.04 or other group permits on site generation resourceslike the Trace power inverter to provide maximum benefit to thecustomer, the energy industry and the environment.

The seventh load control node 2.20H for the dishwasher 2.22H meters andmonitors the dishwasher 2.22H and communicate with its embedded controlprocessor through the controlled device communications channel howeverin most cases would not require the mains coupler 2.14. With theaddition of the load control node 2.20H, the dishwasher 2.22H may becapable of performing its designated function at the best time and inthe most efficient manner to meet the needs of the customer whileinteracting with all of the other nodes 2.20 in the home 2.18 to meetthe contractual obligations of the energy demand cap under which it mustoperate. In this example, the node 2.20G may be a retrofit deviceattached to the embedded controller of the dishwasher 2.22H or may befully integrated into the embedded processor thus reducing the overallcost of the combined systems by sharing processor and memory components.

The system, as described above, is designed to integrate all “utility”consuming and generating resources over a plurality of network media anddesigns to create dynamically defined and reconfigurable groups of anysize and provide them with the ability to collaborate andintercommunicate to manage the demand on the delivery system and supplychain of “utility” providers and their products.

As discussed more fully below, alerts or message may be sent to theutility 1.06 and/or the customer (via email or the customer interface1.14) and/or the service provider and/or a maintenance provider.

In one aspect of the present invention the control and/or load controlnode 1.10B, 1.10C receives information related to a characteristic ofthe commodity supplied by the utility 1.02, i.e., electricity, andcontrols operation of the controlled or controlled and metered device1.08B, 1.08C. In one embodiment, the characteristic is related to theavailability of electricity. In another embodiment, the characteristicis related to the cost or relative cost of electricity.

For example, using the exemplary home 2.18 discussed above, if therefrigerator 2.22D was scheduled or otherwise needed to initiate orperform a defrost cycle, the onboard refrigerator controls may query theassociated load control node 2.20D to determine the cost or relativecost of electricity. The cost may be expressed as an actual value, i.e.,dollars per unit electricity, or as an relative classification, e.g.,high or low or peak vs. non-peak time periods. Based on the receivedcost or relative cost, the onboard controller of the refrigerator 2.22Dmay decide to either whether to perform the defrost cycle or to postponethe defrost cycle. In one embodiment, this decision may be based on asimple comparison between the actual cost and a predetermined valuewhich may have been input by the customer. In other words, if the actualcost were above the predetermined value, then the scheduled action wouldbe postponed.

In one embodiment of the present invention, each device 1.08 has anintegrate node 1.10. By virtue of the node 1.10 being fed informationdirectly from the supply chain, i.e., the utility, regarding theavailability and/or cost of energy, the device 1.08 may make decisionsbased upon this information. For example, functions of the device 1.08may be delayed and re-scheduled for another time. Or a different moreenergy efficient mode may be chosen.

In another aspect of the present invention, energy consumption for adevice 1.08 may be trended or otherwise compared with predeterminedthreshold to detect and/or predict a failure or need for maintenance.For example, if the door of the refrigerator 2.22D was left open, energyconsumption would increase. If energy consumption was increasing, therate of increase could be compared with a predetermined value and analert or message generated if the rate met or exceeded a predeterminedvalue. Alternatively, the rate of consumption could be directly comparedwith a predetermined value to determine if an error or malfunctionexisted. In another example, if the filter of the pool pump 1.30Bbecomes clogged, the pool pump 1.30B will begin to work harder. This mayalso be seen through analysis of the energy consumption of the pool pump1.30B.

In still another aspect of the present invention, a control node 1.10Bor load control node 1.10C may be linked to one or more sensors (notshown) which sense parameters of the corresponding device 1.08B, 1.08C.The sensors may currently exist or be a part of the device 1.08B, 1.08Cor be added to the device 1.08B, 1.08C. For example, the water heater1.30C of the above example may have a water temperature sensor. Readingsfrom the water temperature sensor may be received by the control node1.10B or the load control node 1.10C and used in determined how tocontrol the water heater 1.30C. For example, if the water heater's 1.30Ccontrol is instructing the water heater 1.30D to heat the watercontained therein (based, at least in part, on the water temperature),the water heater 1.30C may first check with the associated load controlnode 1.10C to determine if it should proceed. The load control node1.10C may approve or not approve based on a number of factors, includingas indicated above, a characteristic of the electricity supply and/orcost or relative cost of electricity, as well as the energy requirementsof other devices 1.08 within the home 2.18 (or devices 1.08 at othersites).

In another aspect of the present invention, a device 1.08 may be astorage system or an inverter system. For example, the device 1.08 couldinclude one or more batteries (not shown) coupled to the powertransmission network by a load control node 1.10C. When energy isrelatively less costly or more available, e.g., during non-peak hours,the load control node 1.10C could control a mains coupler 2.14 toprovide energy to the batteries. During peak periods, the load controlnode 1.10C may then control the mains coupler 2.14 to reverse and directenergy from the batteries to other devices 1.08.

In another aspect of the present invention, the system 1.02 allows thedevices 1.08 working with their associated nodes 1.10 to make jointdecisions based upon the information received from the supply chain. Forexample, if a curtailment PROGRAM affects a group of pool pumps within acertain geographic region, limiting each pump's run time to 15 minutesper every hour. Each pump and/or corresponding load control nodes 1.10Cmay determine which pumps will run during each 15 minute segment of eachhour.

In still another aspect of the present invention, the customer may set alimit for the total power demand for the home 2.18 during any givenperiod, e.g., 5000 Watts. The gateway node 1.10D receives the totalcurrent demand, i.e., power being used, on a real-time basis. Thus, ifanother device 1.08 in the home 2.18 wanted to perform a function, thedevice 1.08 (through the associated node 1.10) may query the gatewaynode 1.10D for permission. If the requested function would cause totaldemand to exceed this amount (or come within a predetermined threshold),the gateway node 1.10D may not allow the device 1.08 to perform thatfunction.

In a further aspect of the present invention, the customer or system1.12 may set up a desired operating parameter for a particular device1.08. For example, the customer may indicate that he wants the pool pump1.30B to operate for a given period of time each day, e.g., eight hours.In one embodiment, the system 1.12 will schedule the operation of thepool pump 1.30B based on the information received from the supply chain,e.g., the cost or availability of electricity.

3. Advanced Thermostatic Control Device

As discussed, in one aspect of the present invention the thermostat1.30D is an advanced thermostatic control device linked to the powerdistribution network. The thermostat 1.30D is also linked to the nodes1.10 within the customer site 1.04 either directly or through thegateway node 1.10D and receives information from and regarding the powerdistribution network and the devices 1.08. As a result of theavailability of information from up and down the supply chain, thethermostat 1.30D may more efficiently manage and offer additionalfunctionality to the user.

In one aspect of the present invention, the thermostat device 1.30Dreceives information related to a characteristic of the energy beingsupplied and displays the characteristic on the display 3.04. In oneembodiment, the characteristic is related to the availability of theenergy. For example, the characteristic could be either “peak” or“non-peak” hours. If the power distribution network was operating duringpeak hours, “PEAK” could be displayed on the display 3.04. Or if thepower distribution network was operating during non-peak hours,“NON-PEAK” could be displayed on the display 3.04.

In another embodiment, the present invention, the characteristic may berelated to the cost of the energy or electrical power being supplied.For example, the characteristic could be the actual cost of a specifiedunit of energy. The actual cost could be displayed on the display 3.04.Alternatively, the characteristic could be a relative cost, i.e., is theactual cost near or about a baseline cost, or above or below thebaseline cost.

With specific reference to FIG. 3A, in the illustrated embodiment, thecost or relative cost may be displayed to the user graphically. In otherwords, the cost could be displayed using a one or more symbols (shown as“$”). The number of symbols are related to the cost, i.e., the moresymbols displayed the greater the actual or relative cost. For example,the thermostat 1.30D may use a scale from 1 to X symbols. X could be anynumber, e.g., 4 or 10.

The user, in viewing this information, could make an informed decisionon where to set the desired temperature (or setpoints) using the controlpanel 3.02.

With particular reference to FIG. 3B, in another aspect of the presentinvention the thermostat 1.30D forms part of a temperature andenvironmental sensing and control system 3.08. In this aspect of thepresent invention, the thermostat 1.30D is a node having a nodeprocessor 2.02, memory 2.04 and two-way communications channel 2.06. Asshown, in the illustrated embodiment, the thermostat 1.30D is coupled tothe nodes 1.10 at the customer site 1.04 through the gateway node 1.10D.The thermostat 1.30D is also coupled to one more sensors 3.10 which areadapted to sense one or more parameters related to indoor or outdoor airquality. Based on the sensed data, the thermostat 1.30D controls otherdevices 1.08 to manage air quality. The managed devices may include oneor more HVAC systems, air cleaners or electro-static filters, fans,humidifiers, de-humidifiers, damper and fresh air input ducts, andionization devices or at type of device 1.08 which may affect airquality.

In one embodiment the sensors 3.10 include an indoor air temperaturesensor 3.10A and a humidity sensor 3.10B. In another embodiment, thethermostat 1.30D may also include sensors 3.10C for measuring and/orsensing one or more of the following: outside temperature, UV intensity,wind direction and speed, relative humidity, wet bulb thermometer, dewpoint. In still another embodiment, the thermostat 1.30D may receiveexternal information through the gateway node 1.10D, such as informationrelated to the local weather forecast.

In a first embodiment of the present invention, the temperature andenvironmental sensing and control system 3.08 will manage indoor airtemperature. In a second embodiment, using the sensor data and/orexternal information, the temperature and environmental sensing andcontrol system 3.08 will manage the air quality and humidity in the site1.04 by controlling the operation of the appropriate heating,filtration, conditioning and cooling equipment in conjunction withdamper and fresh air input ducts, electro-static filters and ionizationdevices to maximize comfort and indoor air quality.

In one aspect of the invention, the system 3.08 will manage theavailable environmental conditioning devices 1.08 to maintain theoptimum temperature, humidity and air quality conditions based on userdefined minimum and maximum values for comfort indices and price ofenergy indices.

In another aspect of the present invention, the system would be able toswitch between energy types, e.g., electric versus gas for environmentheating and would also have the ability to switch suppliers based on theasking price of the energy suppliers or brokers serving the location.

In still another aspect of the present invention, the system 3.08 wouldbalance two primary factors. First, the system 3.08 would maintain theenvironment within user defined acceptable minimum and maximum valuesfor one or more air quality parameters, for example, air temperatureand/or humidity. Second, the system 3.08 also vary these acceptableparameters based on user defined preferences and/or price points andand/or historical data (see below) to achieve the optimum environmentalconditions.

To provide feedback to the user, the system 3.08 may also record thenumber of energy units (energy units as used here include for examples:kilowatt hours, BTU's, Therms, and Jules but is not so limited) used asa function of time for each of the devices 1.08 monitored and/orcontrolled by the system 3.08. Furthermore, the system 3.08 may reportback detailed consumption data as a function of time and summarize thesedetails to provide at a minimum, daily averages for any user definedperiod, monthly totals, as will as track the costs of each energy unitconsumed per period and provide detailed and average daily cost for anyuser defined period as well as monthly totals.

In one aspect of the present invention, the system 3.08 may be capableof communicating with the devices 1.08 which have associated control orload control nodes 1.10B, 1.10C, beyond its primary management functionof the environmental air management systems permitting each control nodepoint within the site 1.04 or other sphere of control up to andincluding the entire utility supply chain, to use the same economicmodeling techniques and controls that it uses to manage their primaryfunctions.

The thermostat 1.30D is the customer or user's primary interface withthe system 3.08. As discussed above, the thermostat 1.30D will becapable of displaying to the user the current cost of energy as well asits relative cost as a graphical or numeric value (1–10) or $$$$$$$$)where 1 is low and 10 is high or $ is low and $$$$$$$ is high.

In another aspect of the present invention, the system 3.08 may alsodisplay on the display screen 3.04, energy efficiency data. The energyefficiency data may used to indicate, based on control parameters set inthe system 3.08, how energy efficient the management protocol andcontrol parameters capabilities are. This relative efficiency data mayrelate to the site's 1.04 performance on a standalone basis or may betied to a comparison group against which relative efficiency can bedetermined or both. This data indicating the relative and actual cost ofenergy and efficiency can also be communicated to other remote devices1.08 like TV screens, or other display devices (at the site 1.04 orremote) which are capable of communicating and displaying information.These devices 1.08 may includes but are not limited to appliances withdisplays or indicator lights to reflect the cost of energy or any othermeans available at points of consumption or stand along means to informthe customer of the relative and actual cost of energy and theirrelative energy efficiency level. The system 3.08 may also manage,report and track its energy unit usage and interface with energy unitsuppliers via a communications channel. In one embodiment, the system3.08 controls will be located at the site 1.04, while the processors formodeling and managing the sources and types of energy units to beutilized and committed to can be local or distributed and operate over acommunications network without regard to the actual location of ordistance from the site 1.04.

In one aspect of the invention, the user may set a temperature setpoint,i.e., a desired temperature and the system 3.08 based on the temperaturesetpoint, sensed data, as well as the user's historical use of thesystem 3.08 may determine an effective setpoint. The system 3.08 maythen control the devices 1.08 as a function of the effective setpoint.

The temperature setpoint may have an associated “deadband”. For example,a temperature setpoint of 72 degrees may have a deadband of +/−5degrees. In this example, the system 3.08 would not initiate coolinguntil the actual temperature reached 77 degrees or would not initiateheating until the actual temperature reached 67 degrees.

In another aspect of the present invention, the variable dead band ofoperation of the system 3.08 may be directly tied to the cost of energyand the customer's willingness to pay. For example, a fixed set point toa cost energy may be set and an optimal ramp rate based on a time andtemperature differential to achieve savings. Alternatively a userdefined ramping rate such as 1 degree per 30 minutes to modify thetemperature set point of the site 1.04 to reduce the operation of theheating or cooling system during periods of high energy prices may bedefined.

In one aspect of the invention, the system 3.08 manages comfort for thecustomer site 1.04 by learning from the user's inputs or adjustments tothe system 3.08 to change or modify indoor air temperature. Thislearning process alters the operation of the system 3.08, freeing thecustomer from having to make changes to manage the indoor environmentalcondition. To accomplish this, the system 3.08 must actively monitor andcontrol not only the temperature setting in the home 2.18 but may alsomonitor and actively control the humidity levels.

In one embodiment, the system 3.08 determines the effective temperatureto accommodate changes in the indoor humidity settings. For example, ifthe customer initially sets the thermostat at 72 degrees F., the system3.08 senses the indoor humidity level and maintains a relationshipbetween the temperature and humidity level sensed. As the humidity levelof the home 2.18 rises in summer, the set point would remain at 72degree F., however, the effective setpoint that the system 3.08 mustmaintain is automatically lowered to maintain a consistent level ofcomfort. As a default parameter, the system 2.18 may have to lower theeffective set point from that established by the customer by 3 degreesF. for every 10% of relative humidity that is sensed to retain thecomfort level in the site 1.04. On the opposite side of the controlalgorithm, as a default parameter, the effective set point would beraised by 3 degrees F. for every 10% reduction in sensed humidity withinthe home 2.18 to maintain the desired comfort level in winter. The ratioof 3 degrees F. + or − is a default setting and would be modified asneeded based on the user's changes to the set point at the thermostat1.30D. Changes to the effective set point as it relates to the sensedhumidity therefore may be increased of decreased from the default ratiospermitting the control algorithm to learn the user's individualpreferences and over time, eliminate the need for the site 1.04 occupantto make any changes.

In another aspect of the present invention, the system 3.08 allows oneor more occupancy modes to be defined and/or modified and/or utilized bythe user. The use of different occupancy modes would assist in achievinga reduced level of demand on the energy delivery system as well asreduce the total cost of operation site 1.04. In one embodiment, theoccupancy modes may be defined or modified through the user interface1.14 (see below) and activated through the thermostat 1.30D and/or theuser interface 1.14. Examples of possible occupancy modes include: home,away, weekend, weekday, holiday. Specific modes may also be defined fordifferent users.

The system's 3.08 performance and energy reduction capabilities arefurther enhanced during all periods by applying the most energyeffective set point or its related off set if the occupancy mode is“vacant” and applying the comfort management off set if the occupancymode is “home”. This occupancy sensitive control is further enhanced bythe addition of occupancy sensing devices that communicate with thesystem 3.08.

In still another aspect of the present invention, the system 3.08 maydetermine the time necessary to recover from a one occupancy mode toanother mode. In another words, this recovery time at which a transitionor recovery process is to be initiated if the system 3.08 is set to a“recover by” time versus the default of “start recovery at” time.

The system 3.08 may be enhanced by having access to energy pricing data.Energy price information is used by the system 3.08 to predict the totalcost of operation at the site 1.04 for maintaining the environmentalcomfort. Forward projection of pricing enables the system 3.08 todetermine the optimal humidity and temperature settings that can beachieved for the site 1.04 and perform humidity level increases in thecase of heating or humidity level decreases in the case of cooling sothat the effective set point can be either lowered in the case ofheating or raised in the case of cooling, permitting the heating orcooling system to run less during periods of higher prices. This abilityto precondition the site in anticipation of increased pricing on averagewill reduce the total energy bill for the site 1.04.

Energy pricing information may be entered by the customer, bepre-established as part of an energy supplier program or be set to adefault value designed to create a balance of comfort and savings.

With reference to FIGS. 3C–3G, one implementation of the above describedsystem 3.08 will now be explained. The graph of FIG. 3C, depicts how, asenergy prices rise, the ability of the system 3.08 to manage the indoorair temperature may be managed. In the graph of FIG. 3C, three scenariosare presented, however the present invention is not limited in thenumber or type of scenarios that might be offered or exist with anygiven implementation. In the illustrated embodiment, the three scenariosare maximum savings, balanced savings and comfort, and maximum comfort.For each user selected scenario, the system 3.08 has a predetermineddefault offset (which defines the deadband). Additionally, the offsetmay vary as a function of a characteristic of the supplied energy, e.g.,availability and/or price. In the illustrated embodiment, differentoffsets are defined for energy supply classifications of low, medium,high, and critical.

Because some energy suppliers offer what is known as time-of-day pricingin their tariffs, the illustrated price points could be tied directly tothe tariff structure for the energy supplier. If real time pricing isoffered by the energy supplier serving the site 1.04, this sametemperature allowed variance could be utilized to generate savings andreduce supply chain demand. Another load management program offered byenergy supplier utilizes price tiers which the utility managesdynamically to reflect the total cost of energy delivery to itscustomers. These tiers provide the customer a relative indicator of theprice of energy and are usually defined as being LOW, MEDIUM, HIGH andCRITICAL. These 4 tiers are superimposed in the graph of FIG. 3C toillustrate how the tiers would be used by a energy supplier to signalthe customer and the system about the relative cost of energy.

This feature is applicable to the systems 3.08 described above wheneither a fixed set point is used or can further improve the ability ofthe system that utilizes the programmable set point feature to expandthe operating efficiency of the heating and/or cooling systems whilereducing the total demand on the energy delivery system. By combiningthe price data with preconditioning of the site temperature and humiditylevels and further applying the occupancy mode of the site, additionalsavings as described above can be achieved. As a direct result, ifdeployed in sufficient quantities in a geographic area, price volatilityin energy prices can be reduced.

In one aspect, the system 3.08 manages comfort by balancing humidity andtemperature based on its learned preference setting using customerinputs or using system defaults. This ability to manage temperatures isenhanced by including a economic management system built into the system3.08 which will direct the operation of the devices 1.08 system toachieve customer desired economic goals. This example of how the systemcan manage costs and comfort should not be construed as limiting orconstraining the ability of the system 3.08 to deliver additionalbenefits of comfort or cost management.

To begin the process the system 3.08 tracks and learns about the thermalgain characteristics of the home 2.18. To do this, the system 3.08tracks the thermal gain rate of the home 2.18 for each set pointselected over time by the customer. With reference to FIG. 3D, a thermalgain table for two set points is illustrated. FIG. 3 d shows two setpoints for the home 2.18 that the thermostat 1.30D has recorded. Thefirst set point for which data is available is 72 degrees F. The threetrends illustrated as lines 3.12A, 3.12B, and 3.12C plot the thermalrate of gain in the site 1.04 for different outside temperatures. On theday represented by line 3.12A the outside temperature was 99 degrees F.On the day represented by line 3.12B, the outside temperature was 90degrees F. On the day represented by line 3.12C, the outside temperaturewas 77 degrees F. The next set point for which data is illustrated isthe set point of 76 degrees F. The three trends shown as lines 3.14A,3.14B, and 3.14C illustrate the thermal rate of gain in the home 2.18for the same outside temperatures plotted in the 3.12A, 3.12B, 3.12Cdata points. This illustration is used to show the impact the set pointversus outside temperature differential has over the thermal gain ratein the home 2.18. While these graphs are drawn to illustrate the rate ofthermal gain, they do not depict the rapid initial gain when thedifferential is large and the slower rate of thermal gain, which occursas the indoor temperature reaches the outside temperature. This rate ifthermal gain change is illustrated in FIG. 3D as plot line 3.16 whichshows the thermal gain for a set point of 74 degree F. and an outsidetemperature of 90 degrees F.

The second step is to learn the operational run characteristics of theHVAC system as a function of the thermal gain. Since the outsidetemperature varies continuously during a typical day, the rate ofthermal gain and the HVAC run times also vary in accordance with thesechanges. FIG. 3E illustrates a typical day showing plot lines for thethermal gain rate and the associated HVAC run time. It should be notedhere that the setpoint of the system 3.08 was set at a fixed point forthe entire day and the use of humidity sensing and control of humiditylevels were not introduced into the illustration so that the graphicalplots depict a normal home with a normal HVAC control thermostat. Hereagain, the illustration depicts that as the outside temperature risesand the differential between the indoor setpoint and the outsidetemperature increase, the thermal gain causes the HVAC system to cyclemore frequently. At some point, in extremely hot weather or moreimportantly in periods of high humidity, with the setpoint at a lowsetting, the thermal gain would exceed the HVAC units' ability torecover the indoor air temperature to the setpoint. When this occurs,the HVAC run time plot would plateau at 100% of operation and the indoorair temperature would rise above the setpoint, until the outsidetemperature dropped to a level where the thermal gain did not exceed theHVAC units ability to recover the indoor temperature setting or theindoor humidity level dropped to the point where the occupant began tofeel cold and adjusted the setpoint higher, permitting the unit toresume a more normal cyclical pattern.

The third step is for the user to pick from a plurality of economicoptions offered by the system 3.08. These options range from 100%comfort management without any regard for cost to 100% economicmanagement without any regard to comfort. This choice at a high level,for example, would be but is not limited to a selection scheme from 1 to10 which the user would select from, where 1 is pure comfort managementand 10 is pure economic management. While this example would in itssimplest from provide a selection of 10 options, the underlying controloptions used by the system 3.08 could be modified and expanded toprovide an infinite number of options. To illustrate how the options inthis example would drive the control logic we will now review thecontrol parameters effected and illustrate the resulting controls. Theprimary control parameter would be tied to the number of degrees fromthe set point that the customer would make available to the system 3.08to achieve economic benefits. This parameter would start with the setpoint established by the CUSTOMER (for this example 72 degrees F.) andat the maximum comfort setting would not move off of this set point (seeFIG. 3F). In the maximum savings setting, the set point offset would be4 degrees F. which would permit the system in this example to vary thetemperature in the home form the normal set point of 72 F by the 4degree offset making the acceptable temperature range 72 F to 76 Fwithin which the system 3.08 would manage the environment. The nextparameter that would be used to achieve economic goals would be theramping rate at which the system 3.08 would permit the temperature torise within the site 1.04 as it moved from one set point to a higher orlower one to achieve economic benefit. Here again, for the maximumcomfort setting, since the allowable offset is zero, the ramping ratehas no effect. In this case however, another parameter that regulatesthe offset from the set point used by the system 3.08 to triggerrecovery back to the set point (the dead band of operation) would be analternative control parameter. In this case, if the normal dead band was2 degrees F., for the maximum comfort range this might be lowered to 1degree. In the maximum savings setting where the allowable temperaturerange has a 4 degree variable, the ramping rate would be capable ofbeing controlled through a combination of varying the dead band rangeand the thermal gain rate in the site 1.04. For the maximum savingssetting, the dead band in this example would be raised to 3 degrees F.and the rate of thermal gain per hour would be set at 3 degrees F. perhour. The results of this example are illustrated in FIG. 3F. Theexamples here are only used to illustrate how the system 3.08 using theinputs from the customer would vary the operation of individualparameters as described to either maintain an optimum comfort or optimumsavings control algorithm and are not meant to limit the number ofcontrol parameters that the system 3.08 might use of the way in whichthese different levels of comfort or savings are achieved. Additionalparameters and controls could also be in more elaborate implementationsof the system. The following paragraphs disclose these additionalcontrol parameters and control modes but should not be construed aslimiting the system's capabilities to these examples.

In another aspect of the present invention, the system 3.08 uses thelearned thermal gain characteristics of the site 1.04 along with thecustomer selected allowable temperature variation range to maintain aflat level of demand and consumption. Under this control program, thesystem 3.08 uses the thermal gain rate of the home 2.18 and itsassociated HVAC system run time to produce a base line of consumption.Using this base line the system 3.08 can be instructed to manage thedemand and consumption rate at either a flat level or at some reducedlevel by varying the indoor air temperature within the allowable range.The following illustrates how this control program works, but should notbe construed to limit the capabilities of the system 3.08 to performthese functions using different control logic or additional sensingdevices to improve the process. For this example, the set point of thethermostat is 72 degrees F. and the allowed variation selected by thecustomer is 4 degrees F. making the acceptable range for indoortemperature from 72 degrees F. to 76 degrees F. Since the time, when thebase line is set can be triggered by a plurality of conditions, such asa user or program defined time of day, percentage level of operating runtime, energy consumption rate for a give period of time or any othermeasurable on sensed event, for this example it is assumed that thecustomer has set the base line trigger to be set when the HVAC units runtime reaches 33%. In the early morning when it is cool, the system 3.08in this example will be operating at a cycle rate of 10%. As the outsidetemperature rises, the thermal gain on the home 2.18 is monitored alongwith the HVAC cycle rate on a continuous basis. The rise in the outsidetemperature causes the HVAC cycle time to increase as illustrated inFIG. 3E. As the system 3.08 reaches the trigger level of 33% cycle runtime, the base line is established and the system 3.08 using itscomputed thermal gain rate and the corresponding HVAC cycle run timeprojections, computes the required effective set point offset needed tokeep the HVAC cycle run time at the specified trigger level of 33%. Byadjusting the effective set point upward, the system 3.08 is able tomaintain the HVAC run time at the predetermined trigger level up to thepoint that the thermal gain rise rate exhausts the allowed temperaturevariant allowed for the site 1.04. At this point, the system will havethe option, based on control parameters set in the system by thecustomer or user or any other controlling entity, to exceed the cyclerun time trigger level or exceed the allowed temperature depending onwhether comfort or economic requirements are the primary drivers for thesite 1.04, the energy supply chain or a combination of both. FIG. 3Gillustrates this scenario, assuming that the thermal gain of the site1.04 does not exhaust the allowed temperature variant for the site 1.04.

It should be noted that the setting of this trigger point and thecontrol of the system 3.08 may be for this example, or for any example,or for the entire system, under the control of a party other than thecustomer and therefore is not be limited in its scope as a residentialor commercial control system. In a large-scale deployment, the system3.08 can be under the control of an energy supplier and can be used tomanage a plurality of environmental control devices attached to theenergy supply chain. It should also be noted that the control of thesystem 3.08 may be shared by a plurality of sources each having adefined level of authority and control over an individual control pointor group of points as needed to manage, monitor and balance the demandof the delivery supply chain.

As discussed above, another feature of the system 3.08 is its ability toreceive the cost of energy from the energy supply chain. Price signalscould take the form of tiers or actual prices. In either case, thecustomer would be capable of specifying to the system 3.08 theirwillingness to pay for comfort or their desire to save by inputting intothe system 3.08 a plurality of offsets from the set point that thesystem 3.08 could use to manage the environmental air comfort range. InFIG. 3C several scenarios are illustrated. In the first scenario, thecustomer can specify using levels of comfort or savings theirwillingness to provide additional temperature variants based on the costof energy from the supply chain. Three lines are depicted, one be formaximum comfort, one for balance comfort and savings and the third formaximum savings. In the maximum comfort setting the customer isindicating that they will not give up anything based on the price ofenergy and therefore will not generate any savings. In the balancedcomfort and savings setting, the customer is willing to give up 4degrees of comfort to achieve savings. In the maximum savings settingthe customer is indicating that they will give up 8 degrees of comfortto achieve savings over comfort. These setting are specified as beingset by the customer, however they may be controlled by other means suchas the energy supplier or other outside management entities. An exampleof this might be a utility or other energy services company that offersa customer a flat rate per month for energy but under that agreement thecustomer would relinquish control of their heating and cooling system tothe provide.

Under this example the entity managing the system 3.08 would providepricing commensurate with their ability to control the home and thepremise occupant or customer would pay less for their energy as thatlevel of control by the supplier increased. In this example as in allother examples it should be noted that these features of the system 3.08are not separate and can be used in a plurality of combinations tocreate control systems capable of delivering benefits to all partiesassociated with the generation, delivery and consumption of energy. Inour example above, where the customer wanted to achieve maximum savingsto was willing to give up 8 degrees of comfort to achieve that goal, ifthe site 1.04 as equipped to manage humidity levels, and the humiditylevel could be managed so as to reduce it by 20%, the actual temperaturevariant available to the system 3.08 to achieve the customers goalswould increase from 8 degrees to 14 degrees giving the system 3.08 a lotof latitude to manage within.

Another feature of the system 3.08 that improves both comfort and energyefficiency is its ability to determine the optimal fan extended run timethat can be applied to forced air HVAC systems to gain additionalcooling and heating benefit from residual cooling and heating absorbedinto the duct system during the thermal recovery process. Traditionally,heating and cooling systems upon reaching the desired set point shutdown the heating or cooling generation unit and enter a state ofnon-operation. In the case of heating, a sensor in the plenum unit willforce the fan to continue to operate, for safety reasons, until theplenum temperature drops to a safe level. At this point the fan andsystem cease to operate. When in cooling mode, the entire system 3.08,including the fan, typically cease operation as soon as the set point isachieved. In both of these cases, there is residual thermal benefitstored in the ductwork that is lost to the site 1.04. The system 3.08,using sensors, will continue to operate the fan to extract this residualthermal benefit from the duct system and transfer it into theconditioned space of the site 1.04. In the case of heating, the fan willcontinue to operate until the duct temperature lowers to the point ofbeing equal to that of the sensed temperature of the conditioned space.In the case of cooling, the fan will continue to operate until the ducttemperature rises to the point of being equal to or some offset greaterthan that of the sensed temperature of the conditioned space.

In a more elaborate implementation of the system 3.08, the environmentalcontrol system would utilize additional sensors, controls and in somecases ancillary humidity control devices to maximize savings for thecustomer and reduce the impacts on the environment. This is accomplishedby making the system 3.08 overall more energy efficient, thus permittingpower generators to reduce the operation of their power generationfacilities, resulting in a reduction in air pollution and theconsumption of our limited natural resources. Energy efficiencyimprovements through a combination of balancing thermal gain and sensedhumidity can be performed in a plurality of ways. For illustrationpurposes, several will be discussed here but should not be considered aslimiting the ways that improvements in energy consumption rates andcomfort can be achieved.

The two primary factors effecting comfort in conditioned air space aretemperature and humidity. As stated earlier, humidity plays a largefactor in comfort and by controlling humidity levels, temperatures canbe raised and traditional HVAC systems will run less thus saving energy.Traditional HVAC systems, by their design, remove humidity in the air asa function of moving air through a cooling coil. This humidity removecreates a more comfortable environment but typically, the removal of thehumidity is purely a byproduct of the cooling process and is notcontrolled. The system 3.08 may offer the ability to modify existingHVAC systems to make them humidity control systems by the addition ofhumidity sensing communicating nodes. These nodes sense humidity levelsin the conditioned space and provide the input to the system 3.08 sothat it can manage not only the temperature but the humidity levels inthe site 1.04. Sensors alone however cannot perform the humidity controlprocess. In addition, the system 3.08 supports a plurality ofcommunicating control switching, monitoring and metering sensors tocomplete the process. The following example of humidity control, thatcan be incorporated into new HVAC systems or as a modification toexisting HVAC systems, is designed to illustrate how the system 3.08 cansignificantly improve on the operating efficiency and the associatedcost of operation of HVAC units. Through improved operating efficiencythe systems will reduce the total energy they consume, improving theeconomy, reducing emissions and preserving natural energy resources.

A traditional HVAC forced air system consists of a heating unit, acooling unit, a fan and air filtration system. Air is drawn from theconditioned space through a return air duct system and is filtered andthem passes through the fan chamber where it is then directed through aheating chamber followed by a cooling chamber. In the case of a heatpump, the heating and cooling are performed by the same chamber using acommon coil, and may be supplemented by a resistive heating stripchamber in climates where heat pump operation may be marginal duringperiods of extreme cold weather. Air them is passed into the supply ductsystem where it is transported back to the conditioned space through aseries of ducts and registers. In a cooling scenario, the heatingchamber is inoperative and only the cooling process is active. As airpasses through the cooling coil, the cooling coil reducing the ambientair temperature by absorbing heat. At the same time, moisture in the aircondenses on the cooling coil and flows down the coil as a result ofgravitational forces and is collected into a drip pan at the bottom ofthe chamber from there the moisture is piped to a suitable point ofdisposal. By default, as mentioned earlier, this process removeshumidity from the air. Another important point is that traditional HVACunits have a multi speed fan. This fan is designed to operate a severalspeeds depending on its design and operates at a low speed setting whenthe heating process is active and at a high speed when the coolingprocess is active. It does this because heated air is lighter and moveseasily through the duct system requiring less force to move sufficientair into the conditioned space to recover the temperature to thedesignated set point. Cooled air because it is denser requires greaterforce to move it through the duct system and therefore requires a higherfan speed to move an equivalent amount of air through the system 3.08.As a result, traditional HVAC systems have multi speed fans built in butare solely used to compensate for the air density. The system 3.08 takesadvantage of this capability to utilize the lower speed fan settings toreduce the humidity levels in the home. It accomplishes this task byusing a two-way communicating control node capable of modifying the fanspeed settings to operate it in its normal high setting when recovery ofthe ambient air temperature is required and in the low speed setting toreduce the humidity levels in the home. To dehumidify the home 2.18, thesystem 3.08 would operate the air conditioning compressor to cause thecooling coil to drop in temperature and would operate the fan at a lowspeed causing more humidity to be removed from the air as it passesthrough the cooling coil at a slower rate allowing more moisture to beremoved. The cooled air would follow its normal path through the supplyduct system and would pass the dryer and colder air into the conditionedspace. Through a learning process, the system 3.08 would be able todetermine and record in its memory, the rate of dehumidification itsassociated HVAC unit is capable of delivering. HVAC units equipped withmulti speed compressors would operate more efficiently in this scenariothan standard single speed compressor units. For dehumidification in ahome with a multi speed compressor, the low speed compressor settingwould be used to reduce the amount of energy the system 3.08 uses. Tocomplete the dehumidification control process, one of two additional twoway communicating sensors or a combination of both would be needed.Because the cooling coil as it removes humidity from the air mightbecome over loaded with condensation and begin to freeze up, sensors todetect either airflow or the presence of icing of the compressor coilwould be needed. The system 3.08 is capable of utilizing inputs fromthese sensors to either increase the fan speed to cause the coil todefrost or cycle the compressor while operating the fan in either a lowor high speed to force warm air through it thus defrosting the coil. Inheating season, as the outside temperature drops so do the humiditylevels, resulting in low relative humidity levels. Just as humidityremoval in summer makes the air feel colder, removal of humidity inwinter has the same effect. The major difference is that in winter, theresulting cold feeling creates an indoor air comfort level that isundesirable and customers raise the temperature as the humidity levelsdrop to maintain a more comfortable environment. This condition driesout wood doors and floors as well as human sinuses resulting inshrinking of wood products and bloody noses. By increasing the humiditylevels in the site 1.04, the temperature can be maintained at a lowerlevel while retaining the same relative level of comfort. In addition,by increase the humidity level, wood products will not tend to shrink asmuch and sinus conditions will not plague the customer. To accomplishhumidity control during the heating season, the addition of a humidifierin the supply air duct system 3.08, boosts the humidity levels of theconditioned air space allowing a lower temperature setting to bemaintained thus reducing the amount of energy required to maintain asatisfactory comfort level. The system 3.08 is capable of managing thehumidity levels using the humidity-sensing node described earlier in thecooling section but does not require the additional freeze and defrostsensors. Unfortunately, traditional humidification systems are designedto only work when the heating process is active. This is because theydepend on the heated air exiting the heating chamber to pass through aseries of mesh grids or membrane that is soaked with water. As theheater air passes through these grids or membranes, they pickup moisturethrough the process of evaporation and transport it through the supplyduct system into the conditioned air space. To improve on this process,the system 3.08 incorporates a modified duct humidification processwhich heats this grid or membrane to permit unheated air passing throughit to transport moisture into the conditioned space, not requiring themain heating process to be active to accomplish its task. In addition,the system 3.08 is capable of controlling remote, distributedhumidification units throughout the site 1.04, like the units availablefor sale today in a number of retail stores, which are speciallyequipped with a two way communications node controller integrated intothem. A less elaborate adaptation of this fully integrated solution thatthe system 3.08 supports, is a wall plug adapter with an integrated twoway communicating control node, relay contactor and optional humiditysensor. This unit can be used to adapt traditional humidification unitsor vaporizers and make them an integral part of the humidity controlsystem. An additional sensor device is used to measure moisture contenton surfaces, which are exposed directly to the outside like glasswindows. As the humidity level rises in the site 1.04, excess moisturemay gather on these cold surfaces resulting in condensationaccumulation. To manage this condition, optional communicating sensorsto detect moisture accumulation are included with the system 3.08.

Another method of controlling humidity levels in the site 1.04 duringthe cooling season which the system 3.08 supports is the modification ofthe cooling chamber coil to incorporate heat pipe technology to increasethe units dehumidification capabilities on average by 2 times.Communicating sensors as described above would still be needed if lowspeed fan operation was used, however with heat pipe cooling coilretrofit devices, often times humidity levels can be maintained withoutthe need to perform additional dehumidification. The amount of humidityreduction and the ability of the system 3.08 to perform the processefficiently all must be balanced to achieve savings and comfort. Coolingcoil heat pipe retrofit devices are available from numerous companiesthroughout the world like Heat Pipe Technology Inc. of Gainesville, Fla.Companies like Heat Pipe Technology also make stand alone retrofitdehumidification units that can tied directly into the existingresidential HVAC system, permitting the dehumidification process to usethe existing duct work in the home to distributed dehumidified airwithout the need to operate the existing air conditioning compressor.This process is much more energy efficient as the compressor used in theretrofit add-on dehumidification unit uses considerably less energy thanthe whole house compressor but does require a capital investment on thefrom front end which might make it less appealing to some customers. Thesystem 3.08 also supports other forms of dehumidification like desiccantsystems and other forms of humidity absorption technology.

Dehumidification control in more elaborate implementations of the system3.08 can be used to precondition the site 1.04 in anticipation of eventsthat would call for or require demand reductions on the energy supplychain. An example would be a simply energy supplier program where timeof day rates are used to encourage the reduction of system demand duringpeak periods. In anticipation of such events, the system 3.08 is capableof preconditioning the home to reduce the humidity levels in summer orincrease them in winter thus permitting comfort levels to be maintainedwhile raising the ambient air temperature to reduce demand and totalconsumption. This preconditioning process while described here andsupported by the system 3.08 as a “on demand” or “on request” type ofprogram, could be used as the system default, resulting in a permanentreduction of demand on the system 3.08 and a total reduction in energyusage. The capital investment to manage humidity levels in the site1.04, represent about 20% of the annual energy bill but can be easilyrecovered by managing humidity, which in topical climate conditionswould result in an annual energy usage decrease of up to 14%. On thereverse side of this scenario, is the heating load reduction, whichwould impact a number of different energy supply chains and naturalresources. Here again, the equipment to humidify the site 1.04 toincrease humidity levels during heating seasons would be capable ofbeing recovered within 18 to 24 months assuming that they were managedby the system 3.08 to achieve lower heating set points as a function ofrelative humidity levels.

Additional two-way communicating sensors will also improve theoperational capabilities of the system 3.08 by providing additionalinput data. Occupancy sensors as an example would provide the system3.08 with knowledge of if there were people present in the site 1.04.The system 3.08 is capable of receiving authorization from anyauthorized entity to perform items like ramping, set point modificationsor dehumidification differently depending on the presence or absence ofthe occupant. If unoccupied, the system 3.08 can be directed to takemore savings related actions and defer comfort control options. Thisability increases its ability to deliver savings and reduce demand onthe supply chain without affecting the occupants' level of comfort.

Additional two-way communicating sensors are supported by the system3.08 to support indoor air quality as well. Examples of such sensors areCO2, NOX, Radon, Gas, Formaldehyde and CO detectors. These sensors wouldsupply input to the system 3.08 and if so equipped, would trigger theoperation of air exchange systems to lower levels of such gases in thesite 1.04 or trigger and alarm condition. Other communicating sensors todetect smoke or fire are also supported and permit the system 3.08 toperform emergency shut down of the air handler and other equipmentshould such a condition be detected. With such safety and securityfeatures, the system 3.08, as a direct result of its communicationscapabilities, has the ability to interface with and report alarmconditions to a plurality of end points. Examples of such points includebut are not limited to cell phones, pagers, monitoring centers, localand remote alarm horns, bells and lights as well as digital displaydevices like PC's, in premise kiosks, TV screens and personal radioswith digital display screen capabilities like XM Radio and Sirius Radio.The system 3.08 also supports traditional air filtration filtermonitoring as well as more sophisticated electro static filtrationsystems and UVG bacteria and virus air cleansing systems. In all casesthe system 3.08 uses its two-way communicating senor node technology tocontrol and monitor the performance of these units.

In one aspect of the invention data various data elements are storedwithin the system 1.02. In one embodiment, the data may be stored ingateway node 1.10D. However, each node 1.10 in the system 1.02 includesa node processor 2.02 and memory 2.04. Therefore, any node 1.10 in thesystem may assume the processing and/or the control of one or moredevices and/or the storage of system data 1.02 in the event the gatewaynode 1.10D becomes disabled. In one embodiment, the following data maybe maintained or stored by the system 1.02.

1. The current supplier of energy units, the current price per energyunit including delivery.

2. The current operating cost per hour based on the rate and cost ofenergy units being used.

3. The total energy units used and their cost for today, this week, andthis billing period and the past 14 billing periods by supplier andenergy type if multiple types are available.

4. The total energy units used by type and their associated cost for theday, week and billing period for the past 14 billing periods.

5. The balance of available credit per energy unit supplier and anestimate of the available hours and days of energy unit purchases thatrepresents if a debit system 3.08 for prepaid energy is being used.

6. A computed average cost per energy unit by supplier and a percentageof the total energy unit requirement being purchased from that supplierincluding delivery costs.

7. A breakdown of energy units consumed and their cost and supplier byindividual appliances if multiple appliance control and metering isactivated.

8. A projected total billing period cost for each energy type andsource.

9. An aggregated total by type and source of energy unit.

10. A history of temperature set points for the day.

11. An average of temperature set points for the week and billing period

12. Historical totals of energy units usage and cost for this month,last 14 months and year to date.

13. The current temperature set point both user set and fixed.

14. The current dead-band high and low degree spread both user set andfixed.

15. The average temperature maintained for the day, week and billingperiod.

16. The average thermal degree gain or loss per unit of time for thesite 1.04 for a rolling 30, 60 and 90 day period by hour of the day.

17. The average thermal recovery time per degree when heating andcooling systems are operational for a rolling 30, 60, and 90 day periodby hour of the day.

18. The projected annual cost of operation for each of the appliancesbeing monitored.

19. The operational efficiency factor of each appliance being monitoredbased on historical consumption patterns and current operatingstatistics.

20. The current and historical settings for minimum and maximumdead-band temperature and cost settings.

21. Warning indicators of operational irregularities in monitoredappliance consumption patterns.

22. Warning indicators for low balances in debit accounts if prepaidenergy unit accounts are present.

23. Average daily cost of operation of whole site 1.04 and individualappliances on a 30, 60 and 90 day rolling average and same period lastyear.

24. Data, text and billing messages from energy unit suppliers andinformation sources.

25. Weather information and history data including at a minimum outsidetemperature lows and highs, humidity, chance of precipitation wind speedand direction, solar exposure time and angle and UV indexes by day, byweek, by billing period.

26. Total heating and cooling degree days and other statistical dataneeded to normalize consumption and usage data.

27. Computed thermal recovery time for heating and cooling adjusted tocompensate for the external temperature, wind speed, direction, UVindex, humidity and cooling or heating degree day factors. This computedfactor is used to more accurately compute the recovery time for thermalgain or loss when combined with the average normalized thermal gain orloss for the site 1.04. This factor may also be computed centrally andtransmitted, frequently enough to permit adequate factoring of recoverytimes to maximize efficiency and reduce operating costs. Transmittingcentrally computer factors will eliminate the need for external sensorsat each location thus lowering the cost of installation and ongoingmaintenance.

28. A Table of available energy suppliers and user defined preferenceindicators by supplier and type of energy units provided to be used inchoosing the supplier of choice if price points and terms of sale areequal during a given time period.

29. A table used to compute supplier parity when option 28 above is notentered which contains at a minimum, the available suppliers, the typeof energy units available and the number and cost of energy unitspurchase this billing period.

30. An optional user supplied preferred energy unit type indicator.

31. User selected temperature ramping option indicator with default 1degree per hour ramping and optional user defined ramping time framesand degree settings.

32. Low and high temperature alarm settings to protect against heatingand cooling system failures. This alarm trigger point is user defined,and if not entered, defaults to + or −5 degrees above and below themaximum dead-band comfort range entered by the user. This feature isdefeated if the system 3.08 is placed in the off position, but will beoverridden if the user elects to activate the temperature alarm modecapability of the system 3.08.

33. Alarm activation indicator which is user selected to permit theautomatic alarming and notification of a monitoring service if one isavailable and subscribed to by the occupant, owner or system provider.Alarm points and settings are user defined or can be allowed to defaultto system 3.08 defined default points based on the users, owners oroperators preference.

34. Communications channel interface parameters and data including typesand routing information necessary to perform communications activitieson the attached network or networks available. These parameters includeall information required to perform password verification and encryptionas needed or deemed necessary by the owner, operator or communicationsystem provider. These parameters also include the necessary routing andidentification data for alarm trigger reporting points and services usedby or subscribed for or available to the site 1.04.

35. Consumption rates and consumption signature and weather relatednormalization factors for major appliances in the site 1.04 under thecontrol of the system 3.08 for which a direct form of meteringconsumption is not available. Estimated consumption rates for majorappliances in the site 1.04 under the control of the system 3.08 forwhich a direct form of metering consumption is not available.

36. Centralized load aggregation and computational service providersinterface information.

37. Computed normalization factor for the site 1.04 based on historicalconsumption and external factors.

38. Energy efficiency factors derived from modeling the site 1.04 usinga model such as the DOE-2.1 modeling system for comparison ofoperational efficiency.

39. Minimum requirements dead-band range definitions to be used when thesite 1.04 if vacant or unoccupied.

40. Set point pattern change tracking tables to reflect specific day,time and day type setting changes to be used with “follow my lead”artificial intelligence learning and execution routines.

41. Set point pattern change tracking tables to reflect specific outsideweather conditions in relationship to set point changes initiated by theoccupant for use with the “follow my lead” artificial intelligencelearning and execution routines.

4. Customer Control Node Management System and Methods

With references to FIGS. 4A through 4R, the user interface 1.14 may beimplemented as a web page or graphical user interface (“GUI”) 4.02. TheGUI 4.02 may be accessible from remote locations, as discussed above. Inone embodiment, the customer may access the GUI 4.02 through a webbrowser or other display device like a television. In anotherembodiment, the customer may access the GUI 4.02 through a remotedevice, such as a mobile phone and/or personal digital assistant. Byentering a user I.D. and password, the customer may access his or heraccount.

With reference to FIG. 4A, after the customer logs on to the system3.08, a system home page 4.04 may be displayed. The system home page4.04, includes an information section 4.05, a plurality of navigationbuttons 4.06, a navigation menu 4.08, and a control panel 4.10.

In the illustrated embodiment, the information section 4.05 for anexemplary customer, Earl Minem is shown. The information section 4.05includes a greeting, the time and date, as well as several links.Actuation of the links may, for example, redirect the customer to thehome page, the help screen, an e-mail contact section, frequently askedquestions, or may log the customer off of the web site.

The plurality of navigation buttons 4.06 includes a device managementbutton 4.06A, a configure alerts button 4.06B, a systems data button4.06C, a cancel curtailment button 4.06D and a device status button4.06E. The navigation menu 4.08 includes links to several areas of theGUI 4.02 as described below.

When initialized, the GUI 4.02 displays a homeowner control center 4.12in the control panel. In the illustrated embodiment, the homeownercontrol center 4.12 includes a plurality of hyperlinked icons 4.14. Inthe illustrated embodiment, the hyperlinked icons 4.14 include a directaccess icon 4.14A, a scheduling icon 4.14B, a my reports icon 4.14C, analerts icon 4.14D, a configuration data icon 4.14E and a user help icon4.14F. Selection of a home link within the information section 4.05 willreturn the GUI 4.02 to the homeowner control center 4.12.

With reference to FIG. 4B, when the customer selects the direct accessicon 4.14Aa, a plurality of direct access icons 4.16 will be displayedin the control panel 4.10. In the illustrated embodiment, the customerhas direct access of the HVAC system and the whole house meter.Correspondingly, a heating/AC icon 4.16 a and a whole house meter 4.16Bare displayed within the control panel 4.10. In another embodiment, alldevices 1.08 to which the customer may have access are accessible here,e.g., a second thermostat or the water heater. With reference to FIG.4C, selection of the heating/AC icon 4.16A, displays a virtualthermostat 4.18 within the control panel 4.10. The virtual thermostat4.18 contains an information section or display 4.20 and a plurality ofthermostat buttons 4.22. The display section 4.20 includes informationrelated to the actual or real time conditions at the site 1.04. In theillustrated embodiment as shown, the current temperature within thecustomer site 1.04 is 67° Fahrenheit. The heating and cooling set pointsare set to 58° and 85°, respectively. The system 3.08 is in an automaticmode and the heating and cooling systems are in an off condition.Furthermore, as indicated, the occupancy mode is set to “Away”. Asdiscussed below, the system 3.08 allows the customer to program the HVACsystems use the virtual thermostat 4.18 and according to occupancy modesusing heating and cooling set points. By using the thermostat buttons4.22, the customer can change the current operating parameters of thethermostat. For example, selection of a change system mode thermostatbutton 4.22A allows the customer to select between automatic and amanual modes. Selection of a change fan mode button 4.22B allows thecustomer to change the fan mode from “on” to “automatic”. Furthermore,selection of an override temperature button 4.22C or an overrideoccupancy button 4.22D allow the customer to override the currenttemperature and occupancy schedules as defined below. Selection of acancel override button 4.22E allows the customer to cancel a temperatureor occupancy change which was input using the override temperaturebutton 4.22C or the override occupancy button 4.22D. A cancelcurtailment button 4.22F allows a customer to cancel any curtailmentprogram (where permissible).

Returning to FIG. 4B, selection of the whole house meter icon 4.16Bdisplays information within the control panel 4.10 related to thecurrent power being delivered or utilized by the customer site 1.04.Additionally, information related to the accumulated power draw over apredetermined period of time may also be displayed. This information maybe displayed graphically and/or numerically.

Returning to FIG. 4A, selection of some of the menu items within thenavigation menu 4.08 are redundant with the icons 4.14 in the homeownercontrol center 4.12. For example, selection of a direct access button4.08A displays the direct access icons 4.16 within the control panel4.10.

Selection of the scheduling icon 4.14B or a scheduling menu item 4.08B,displays icons for each thermostat within the customer site 1.04 or anoccupancy mode icon (not shown). With reference to FIGS. 4D, 4E, and 4F,selection of the thermostat scheduling icon or the thermostat menu itemunderneath the scheduling menu item 4.08B, displays an occupancy modescreen 4.24 within the control panel 4.10. In one embodiment, the system3.08 allows the customer to define one or more occupancy modes (seeabove). Within each occupancy mode, the customer may set one or moreparameters which control one or more devices 1.08, such as the HVACsystem(s) while the occupancy mode is active.

For example, in one embodiment, the customer may set a cooling setpoint, a heating set point, and may also set an economy profile.

In the illustrated embodiment, the customer has eight occupancy modes.For example, the system 3.08 may include a home occupancy mode, an awayoccupancy mode, a sleep occupancy mode, and a vacant occupancy mode, aswell as four user-defined occupancy modes. Each of these modes isindicated with a respective tab 2.26 along the top of the occupancy modescreen 4.24. As shown in FIG. 4D, selection of a tab 2.26 allows thecustomer to set the parameters for each mode.

For example, in the illustrated embodiment under the home occupancymode, the cooling set point is set to 80° Fahrenheit, the heating setpoint is set to 68° Fahrenheit, and the economy profile is set toeconomical comfort. The economy profile may be used to control the HVACsystem and/or other devices 1.08 based on characteristics of the supplychain, e.g., cost or availability of power. In one embodiment, eachprofile has an associated setpoint offset, e.g., +/−5 degrees. Theparameters for each mode may be set to a set of default parameters byselection of a default button. Any changes made within the occupancymode screen may be applied to the respective mode through selection ofan apply button 4.30. In a further example, with reference to FIG. 4E inthe away mode, the cooling set point is set to 85°, and the heating setpoint is set to 58° Fahrenheit.

In the illustrated embodiment, the economy profile is set through aneconomy profile drop down list 4.32. With reference to FIG. 4F, in theillustrated embodiment, the economy profile may be set to one of threeprofiles: maximum comfort, balance comfort, and economical comfort.

With reference to FIG. 4G, selection of the thermostat scheduling iconor the thermostat menu item under the scheduling menu 4.08B, displays athermostat scheduling calendar 4.34 within the control panel 4.10. Inthe illustrated embodiment, the thermostat scheduling calendar 4.34displays the month corresponding to the current date. However, thethermostat scheduling calendar 4.34 may be navigated using a navigationbar 4.36. Each day on the calendar 4.34 may be defined as a type of day,for example, any day may be defined as a weekday, a weekend, or aholiday. In the illustrated embodiment, all Saturdays and Sundays havebeen defined as weekends, and all Mondays, Tuesdays, Wednesdays,Thursdays and Fridays have been defined as weekdays. However, it shouldbe noted that any day may be defined as any type of day. Each day withinthe calendar 4.34 is a hyperlink. Selection of the hyperlink for anyparticular day on the calendar 4.34 displays a thermostat schedulingpanel 4.36 as shown in FIG. 4H. The thermostat scheduling panel 4.36includes a thermostat dropdown list 4.38 and a select date drop downlist 4.40. The thermostat drop down list 4.38 allows the customer toselect between one or more thermostats which may be present within thecustomer site 1.04. The select day type drop down list 4.40 allows thecustomer to select between various pre-defined day types as well as todefine a new day type.

The thermostat scheduling panel 4.36 permits the customer to select theoccupancy mode which will be used for various time periods during theday.

For example, in the illustrated embodiment, at midnight of the selectedday, the thermostat will be in the sleep occupancy mode. Beginning at4:30 a.m., the thermostat will be in the user 1 occupancy mode and soforth as shown. The thermostat scheduling panel 4.36 also includes anapply button 4.42, an apply to current day button 4.42, an apply to allbutton 4.44, and a back to calendar button 4.46. Selection of the applyto current day button 4.42 will apply the start times and definedoccupancy modes in the thermostat scheduling panel 4.36 to the selectedday in the thermostat scheduling calendar 4.34. Selection of the applyto all button 4.44 will apply the scheduled start times and occupancymodes defined in the thermostat scheduling panel 4.36 to all of the daytypes which are selected in the select day type drop down list 4.40. Asshown in FIG. 4I, the select day type drop down list 4.40 may include anumber of pre-defined day types such as weekday, weekend, or holiday aswell as the number of user-defined day types.

With reference to FIGS. 4A and 4J, selection of the alerts menu item4.08D displays a configure alert screen 4.48 within the control panel4.10. The system 3.08 includes a number of pre-defined alerts, forexample, thermostat temperature out of range control, gateway node notresponding, budget limit alarm, device malfunctioning, communicationfailure, ramping recovery failure, or duplicate IP address. For eachalert, the customer may select or designate the destination, i.e., whogets notified for each alert, and how they are notified. In theillustrated embodiment, the configure alert screen 4.48 includes adestination drop down list 4.50 for each alert. The destination dropdown list 4.50 allows the customer to select who gets notified when thealert occurs. For example, in the illustrated embodiment, the drop downlist may include the home occupant, the service provider or the energyprovider. The configure alert screen 4.48 also includes one or morecheck boxes 4.52 to indicate how the communication of the alert is tooccur, for example, whether or not it is to occur by e-mail or throughthe customer or utility interfaces 1.14, 1.16. The configure alertscreen 4.48 may also include a check box 4.54 for each alert to indicatewhether or not the alert is configurable. The configure alert screen4.48 may also include an entry box 4.56 for each alert which allows thecustomer to indicate what priority the alert should have. However in theanother embodiment, the priority may be used to, e.g., provide adifferent delivery system based on the priority. In the illustratedembodiment, this is primarily for information purposes. Furthermore, theconfigure alert screen 4.48 may also include an alert type drop downlist 4.58 which allows the customer to indicate whether or not a singlealert should be sent or whether an alert should be sent each time analert condition occurs. For example, if over a pre-determined amount oftime, for example an hour, a thermostat temperature is out of range, thesystem 3.08 may be set to deliver a single alert or to send an alerteach time the temperature is out of bounds.

The configure alert screen 4.48 also includes a submit button 4.60 and areset button 4.62 for updating the system 3.08 with any input changes orresetting the alerts to default values.

The configure alert screen 4.48 may also include a personal data updatelink 4.64. Activation of the personal data update link 4.64 will displaya personal data screen (not shown) within the control panel 4.10 whichallows the customer to update its personal information such as address,telephone and e-mail information as well as user name and passwords. Thepersonal data screen may also allow the customer to enter or update abudget threshold, e.g., a monthly budget threshold. As discussed above,the system 3.08 may be set to send an alert when the monthly budgetthreshold has been reached and/or is likely to be reached based oncurrent usage.

With reference to FIGS. 4A and 4K through 4M, selection of the myreports icon 4.14C or the reports menu item 4.08C, will display a reportscreen 4.66 in the control panel 4.10. The report screen 4.66 includes aplurality of reports icons 4.68. Selection of a reports icon 4.68 willdisplay a pop-up screen within the control panel 4.10. For example,selection of a daily temperature icon 4.68A will display a dailytemperature report pop-up screen 4.70 as shown in FIG. 4L. Likewise,selection of a monthly temperature icon 4.68B will display a monthlytemperature report pop-up screen (not shown). The daily temperaturereport pop-up screen 4.70 may allow the customer to select betweenmultiple thermostats using a thermostat drop down list 4.72. The dailytemperature report pop-up screen 4.70 may also include a plurality ofdrop down lists and/or buttons 4.74 which allow the customer to changethe date or dates of the information being displayed in the reportscreen 4.70. For example, the customer may designate a specific date ornavigate through the calendar by days or months.

The report screen 4.66 may also include a daily electrical usage icon4.68C. With refence to FIG. 4M, selection of the daily electrical usageicon 4.68C will display a daily electrical report pop up screen 4.72. Aswith the temperature report pop up screen 4.70, the daily electricalreport pop up screen 4.76 includes a service device drop down list 4.78,which allows the customer to select the device 1.08 for which data isbeing displayed. The daily electrical report pop up screen 4.76 alsoincludes a plurality of navigation buttons 4.80 which allow the customerto navigate through the calendar as well as to display electrical usageinformation on a monthly or a yearly basis. A refresh button 4.82updates the electrical report pop up screen 4.76 based on any changesmade within the service device drop down list 4.78 or the navigationbuttons 4.80. Selection of a close button 4.84 closes the dailyelectrical report pop up report 4.76.

With reference to FIG. 4N, selection of a config data menu item 4.08Edisplays a configuration data screen 4.86 within the control panel 4.10.The configuration data screen 4.86 includes a number of configurationdata icons 4.88. Selection of a personal data icon 4.88A displays apersonal data screen described above. Selection of a thermostat dataicon 4.88C displays a list of the thermostats within the customer site1.04. Each thermostat may be selected and a thermostat data screen 4.90will be displayed within the control panel 4.10, as shown in FIG. 4O.The thermostat data screen includes a first section for defining theheating section of the corresponding HVAC system and a cooling sectionfor defining the corresponding cooling section of the HVAC system. Theheating section includes a heating drop down list 4.92 which allows thecustomer to select the type of heating which corresponds to the currentthermostat as shown in FIG. 4P. A cooling drop down list 4.94 allows thecustomer to set the type of cooling corresponding to the currentthermostat as shown in FIG. 4Q. As shown in FIG. 4P, the thermostat datascreen 4.90 allows the customer to set a plurality of high and lowlimits. For example, in the illustrated embodiment, the customer may setsafety, alert, heat, and cool high and low limits. These limits may beused in controlling the corresponding HVAC system, as well as setting ordelivering alert messages.

Selection of a home data icon 4.88C on the configuration data screen4.86 displays a home data screen (not shown) within the control panel4.10. The home data screen allows the customer to define variousparameters regarding their home or the customer site 1.04 includingdetails about the construction as well as defining water heaters andother devices which may be found at the customer site such as swimmingpools, whirlpool baths, hot tubs, heated ponds, saunas, fountains,decorative lighting systems, auxiliary heat systems, and/or irrigationsystems.

Selection of an energy switch icon 4.88D on the configuration datascreen 4.86 displays information and allows the customer to modifyparameters related to any energy management switches at the customersite 1.04.

With reference to FIGS. 4N and 4R, selection of the program icon 4.88Eon the configuration data screen 4.86 displays a program participationscreen 4.96 in the control panel 4.10. The program participation screen4.96 provides a list 4.98 of all available power supply programs (“PSP”)or PROGRAMS. The program participation screen 4.96 also includes aplurality of corresponding check boxes 4.100 which allow the customer todesignate which PROGRAMS the customer desires to participate. Theprogram participation screen 4.96 may also include other informationregarding the listed PROGRAMS, including supply type, effective dates,and effective times. Each PROGRAM listed on the program participationscreen 4.96 may be a hyperlink which, when selected, displays additionalinformation related to the selected PROGRAM.

As discussed above, the customer GUI 4.02 allows the customer to view,configure and/or modify various parameters of the system 3.08.Generally, the type and nature of parameters which may be viewed ormodified will be defined by the utility 1.06. As shown above, some ofthese parameters may be configured and/or modified using various dropdown boxes, check boxes and/or entry boxes. However, it should be notedthat some of these entry boxes, drop down lists and/or check boxes maybe used to display certain parameters; however the utility may designatethat the customer cannot modify these parameters.

5. Utility Control Node Management System and Method

With reference to FIGS. 5A through 5I, as discussed above, the utilityinterface 1.16 may be accessible through a web browser. With specificreference to FIG. 5A, after an authorized user at the utility 1.06 logsonto the system 1.02, a utility graphic user interface 5.02 isdisplayed. The utility GUI 5.02 includes a plurality of navigation links5.04 on a utility display panel 5.06.

In the illustrated embodiment, the navigation links 5.04 include animmediate supply link, a scheduled supply link, a program definitionslink, an active supply link, a supply history link, and a reports link.The navigation links also include a link to the utility GUI 5.02 homepage and a link to log off the system. The utility display panel 5.08includes a plurality of utility icons 5.08.

In the illustrated embodiment, the utility icons include an immediatesupply icon 5.08A, a scheduled supply icon 5.08B, a program definitionsicon 5.08C, and active supply icon 5.08D, a supply history icon 5.08Eand a reports icon 5.08F. As discussed above, the utility interface 1.16may be used to define or modify PROGRAMS, to display informationregarding the current active supply of electricity over an electricaldistribution network, provide information relating to the capacity ofelectricity available through implementation of one or more of thePROGRAMS, to supply historical data related to the distribution ofelectricity and to generate one or more reports.

With reference to FIG. 5B, when the immediate supply icon 5.08A isselected, an immediate supply screen 5.10 is displayed within theutility display panel 5.06. The immediate supply screen 5.10 includes apower distribution network section 5.12 and an information section 5.14.In the illustrated embodiment, the power distribution network section5.12 included a meter 5.16 which provides an indication of the immediatecapacity in watts (in real time) for the power distribution network.

In the illustrated embodiment, the power distribution network includes asingle transmission substation, designated tss1, and a singledistribution substation, designated dss1. Under the distributionsubstation, the following nodes are available: Phoenix, Richmond,Philadelphia and Philly non-curtailed, as shown. Within the system 1.02,one or more PROGRAMS may be defined which when activated may curtail oneor more devices 1.08 across one or more customer sites 1.04 (see above).The meter 5.16 gives a graphical indication of the immediate powersupply which is available from the PROGRAMS defined in the powerdistribution network.

Underneath the meter 5.16, a collapsible/expandable tree 5.18 isdisplayed. Each of the levels in the tree 5.18 are selectable. When aparticular level within the tree 5.18 is selected, information regardingthat level and the power distribution network above it are displayedwithin the information section 5.14. For example, as shown in FIG. 5B,when the distribution substation dss1 is selected, information regardingthe station tss1 and the distribution substation dss1 are displayed.

In the information section 5.14 for each level of the distributionnetwork, the immediate capacity and the total capacity are displayed.Immediate capacity is the real time instantaneous capacity available forthe given level based on the defined PROGRAMS and the current status ofall devices within those PROGRAMS. For example, for substation dss1 forall devices currently in a defined PROGRAM, those devices are drawing1,040 watts. If the defined PROGRAMS were implemented, those deviceswould make available or supply 1,040 watts. The total capacity is theaverage for the current hour over a predetermined period, for example,the last seven weeks.

The information section 5.14 also includes a refresh button 5.20 which,when activated, refreshes or updates the information within theinformation section 5.14. Information related to each node, i.e.,Phoenix, Richmond, Philadelphia or Philly non-curtail, may also bedisplayed in the information section by selection of the correspondinglevel within the power distribution network section 5.12. Theinformation section 5.14 may also include a review/request supply link5.22 for each component listed in the information section 5.14.

With reference to FIG. 5C, selection of the review request link 5.22 fora given node or station displays an available program capacity pop-up5.24. The available program capacity pop-up 5.24 lists all definedPROGRAMS that are available for the given node at the current time. EachPROGRAM includes a corresponding checkbox 5.26 which enables the utilityto activate a given PROGRAM. For each PROGRAM listed, the instantaneous,real time available power is listed in a box 5.28 for each PROGRAM. Thetotal capacity 5.30 is also listed for each PROGRAM, i.e., if alldefined devices 1.08 within a given PROGRAM were currently drawingpower. The available power refers to the instantaneous power which wouldbe available if the respective or corresponding PROGRAM were activated.The available program capacity pop-up 5.24 also includes a durationdrop-down list 5.32. The available program capacity pop-up 5.24 may beutilized to immediately activate one or more PROGRAMS to free upcapacity for selected duration. For example, in the illustratedembodiment if the emergency HVAC curtailment program and the emergencyshut-off program were activated, the instantaneous available power wouldbe 1200 watts. The available program capacity pop-up 5.24 also includesa submit button 5.34, a closed button 5.36 and a refresh button 5.38. Ifone or more of the checkboxes 5.26 were activated, and the submit button5.34 were selected, the utility control system 1.12 would broadcast acurtailment signal to the gateway nodes 1.10D to shut down the affecteddevices 1.08 or otherwise curtail those devices 1.08. Activation of theclosed button 5.36 closes the available program capacity pop-up 5.24.Activation of the refresh button 5.38 updates the available poweravailable for each PROGRAM.

With reference to FIG. 5D, selection of the scheduled supply button5.08B displays a scheduled supply screen 5.40 in the utility displaypanel 5.06. The scheduled supply screen 5.40 includes a powerdistribution network tree 5.42 and an information section 5.44. As inthe immediate supply screen 5.10, the tree 5.42 displays the stations,substations and nodes within the power distribution network. Each of thestations, substations and/or nodes may be selectable within the tree5.42. Information related to the capacity available at the selectedlevel within the tree 5.42 is displayed within the information section5.44. In the illustrated embodiment, the power available at the givenlevel during predetermined time periods of the current day are shown.This information is reflective of the capacity or power available fromthe scheduled PROGRAMS. For example, based on the activated programs,between military time 0000 and 0600, the scheduled programs inPhiladelphia have a capacity of 832 watts. For each station, substationor node within the network, the utility 1.06 may review scheduledprograms or create a new schedule for programs. The scheduled supplyscreen 5.40 also includes a refresh button 5.46 which when actuatedupdates the information in the information section 5.44.

Within the create schedules section of the GUI 5.02, a find eligibleprograms pop-up dialog 5.48 as shown in FIG. 5E is available. Thisdialog 5.48 allows the user at the utility to enter some or allinformation regarding a desired program or criteria for a program andsearch for any available program that fits the input criteria.

With reference to FIG. 5F, activation of the program definition button5.08C displays a program summary table 5.50 in the utility display panel5.10. The program summary table 5.50 lists and describes all availablePROGRAMS. In the illustrated embodiment, each listed program may includea link 5.52 which leads to additional specific PROGRAM details. Theprogram summary table 5.50 may also include a new button 5.54.

With reference to FIG. 5G, selection of the new button 5.54 displays aprogram definition screen 5.56 in the utility control panel 5.10. Theprogram definition screen 5.56 creates a new PROGRAM (see below). In oneembodiment, the new PROGRAM may be broadcast to the gateway node 1.10Dat each customer site 1.04. The customer may view the new PROGRAM alongwith the other available PROGRAM and subscribe to the new PROGRAM or anyother available PROGRAM (see above).

In the illustrated embodiment, the program definition screen 5.56includes a program name entry box 5.58 and a description entry box 5.60,both of which allow the user to enter appropriate text information.

The program definition screen 5.56 further includes a set of mutuallyexclusive supply type buttons 5.62 which allow the user to define a typeassociated with the PROGRAM. In the illustrated embodiment, the type maybe one of “on demand” or “scheduled”. An on demand PROGRAM can beimplemented at any time, as needed, by the utility. However, an ondemand PROGRAM may be limited to specific time periods. A scheduledPROGRAM is generally scheduled for specific days during specific timeperiods.

The program definition screen 5.56 also includes a set of drop downlists 5.64 which may be used to set PROGRAM available dates and times.

The PROGRAM may also be identified as “optional” or “overrideable” usingone or more checkboxes 5.66. An optional PROGRAM may be opted into orsubscribed to by the user. An overrideable PROGRAM means that oncesubscribed, the user may override the PROGRAM while it is running.

The program definition screen 5.56 may also include a plurality ofcheckboxes to 5.68 which is used to identify the types of devices 1.08which may be included in the PROGRAM. In the illustrated embodiment, thesystem 3.08 includes HVAC systems, water heaters, pool pump and hottubs/spas. A PROGRAM may be defined to include all devices 1.08 or oneor more types of devices 1.08. The program definition screen 5.56includes back button 5.70, a save button 5.72, and a reset button 5.74.Activation of the back button 5.70 returns the GUI 5.02 to the previousscreen without saving the PROGRAM. Activation of the save button 5.72save the current PROGRAM and returns the GUI 5.02 to the previousscreen. Activation of the reset button 5.74 sets the values in theprogram definition screen 5.56 to default values.

Selection of the active supply button 5.08D displays a screen within theutility display panel 5.06 which provides detail regarding any activePROGRAMS. This screen may include a tree similar to the trees describedabove which details the power distribution network. The screen will alsoprovide information related to all of the active PROGRAMS for anyselected station, substation or node within the power distributionnetwork. For example, for a given active PROGRAM, the followinginformation may be provided: based on real time data received from thenodes 1.10, how many customers have signed up for the given program, howmany customers are actively contributing to the given PROGRAM, and howmany customers have opted out of the program. Furthermore, each devicewhich may be affected by the program may be viewed.

Selection of the supply history button 5.08E displays a screen withinthe utility display panel 5.06 which provides historical data regardingany active program. The same type of information available for theactive PROGRAMS (see above) may be available for any past time or timeperiod.

With reference to FIGS. 5H and 5I, selection of the report button 5.08Fdisplays a reports screen 5.76 within the utility display panel 5.06which provides a graph of energy consumption for a given period of timefor a given device or set of devices. In the illustrated reports screen5.76, the total hourly energy consumption for Mar. 18, 2003 (as measuredby the electric meters) is shown. The reports screen 5.76 includes aninput section 5.78 which allows the user to select the device, e.g.,electric meter, thermostat, water heater, pool pump or hut tub/spa, orthe time period, e.g., daily, hourly, or monthly. The input section 5.78also allows the user to change the time and/or date for which data isshown. The reports screen 5.76 also includes a refresh chart button 5.80which may be used to update the graph to show updated real-time dataand/or to reflect any changes made in the input section 5.78.

Obviously, many modifications and variations of the present inventionare possible in light of the above teachings. The invention may bepracticed otherwise than as specifically described within the scope ofthe appended claims.

1. A system for managing environmental comfort at a site, the sitehaving a temperature and environment management system, the temperatureand environment management system being supplied with energy from anenergy provider, comprising: a humidity sensor for sensing humidity atthe site; a temperature sensor for sensing air temperature at the site;a thermostatic device in communication with the energy provider toreceive a current cost of energy, the thermostatic device being coupledto the humidity sensor and the temperature sensor and configured forreceiving an input from a user, the input including a temperaturesetpoint and of one of a plurality of comfort level scenarios, whereineach of the comfort level scenarios relate to a willingness to pay forenergy at the expense of comfort, wherein the thermostatic device isoperable to determine an effective setpoint as a function of thetemperature setpoint and the sensed humidity and determine a deadbanddefined by the effective setpoint and an offset from the effectivesetpoint, wherein the offset is based on the selected comfort levelscenario and the current level of energy cost.
 2. A system, as set forthin claim 1, wherein the thermostatic device includes a processor, acommunications channel coupled to the temperature and environmentmanagement system, a display coupled to the processor, and a controlpanel coupled to the processor for receiving the input from the user. 3.A system, as set forth in claim 2, wherein the thermostatic devicereceives the current cost of the energy and displays the current cost onthe display.
 4. A system, as set forth in claim 2, wherein the displayand control panel are implemented in a graphic user interface.
 5. Asystem, as set forth in claim 1, wherein the effective setpoint is equalto the temperature setpoint plus a predetermined number of degrees per apredetermined percentage decrease in relative humidity for coolingapplications and the effective setpoint is equal to the temperaturesetpoint minus a predetermined number of degrees per a predeterminedpercentage increase in relative humidity for heating applications.
 6. Asystem, as set forth in claim 5, wherein the thermostatic device tracksuser adjustments to the temperature setpoint and responsively modifiesat least one of the predetermined number of degrees and thepredetermined percentage increase or decrease in relative humidity.
 7. Asystem, as set forth in claim 1, wherein the temperature and environmentmanagement system includes at least one of a humidifier and ade-humidifier, wherein the thermostatic device controls the at least oneof a humidifier and a de-humidifier as function of the effectivesetpoint, the offset, and the sensed temperature and humidity.
 8. Amethod for managing air quality at a site, the site having a temperatureand environment management system, the temperature and environmentmanagement system being supplied with energy, comprising: sensinghumidity at the site sensing air temperature at the site; receiving acharacteristic of energy from the energy provider; receiving input froma user, the input including a temperature setpoint and a selection ofone of a plurality of comfort level scenarios, wherein each of thecomfort level scenarios relate a willingness to pay for energy at theexpense of comfort; determining an effective setpoint as a function ofthe temperature setpoint and the sensed humidity; and, determining anoffset from the effective setpoint based on the selected comfort levelscenario and the current characteristic of energy, wherein the offsetvaries from the effective setpoint as a function of the selected comfortlevel scenario and the current characteristic of energy; controlling thetemperature and environment management system to maintain airtemperature at the site within a deadband defined by the effectivesetpoint and the offset.
 9. A method, as set forth in claim 8, includingthe step of displaying the characteristic of energy on a display.
 10. Amethod, as set forth in claim 8, wherein the effective setpoint is equalto the temperature setpoint plus a predetermined number of degrees per apredetermined percentage decrease in relative humidity for coolingapplications and the effective setpoint is equal to the temperaturesetpoint minus a predetermined number of degrees per a predeterminedpercentage increase in relative humidity for heating applications.
 11. Amethod, as set forth in claim 10, further including the step of trackinguser adjustments to the temperature setpoint and responsively modifyingat least one of the predetermined number of degrees and thepredetermined percentage increase or decrease in relative humidity. 12.A method, as set forth in claim 8, including the step of controlling atleast one of a humidifier and a de-humidifier as function of theeffective setpoint, the offset, and the sensed temperature and humidity.13. A method, as set forth in claim 8, including the step of allowingthe user to define a plurality of occupancy modes, each occupancy modehaving a user defined temperature setpoint.
 14. A method, as set forthin claim 13, wherein each occupancy mode includes a default comfortlevel scenario.
 15. A method, as set forth in claim 13, wherein at leastone occupancy mode has an associated recovery time, the recovery timebeing a desired time period in which the temperature and environmentmanagement system transitions between a previous occupancy mode and theat least one occupancy mode.
 16. A method, as set forth in claim 15,including the step of allowing the user to set at least one start timefor the at least one occupancy mode.
 17. A method, as set forth in claim16, including the step of transitioning from the previous occupancy modeto the at least one occupancy mode at a time equal to the at least onestart time.
 18. A system, as set forth in claim 1, wherein the pluralityof levels of energy cost include low, medium, high and critical, whereinthe offset from the effective setpoint is determined for each of thecost levels of energy within each scenario.
 19. A system, as set forthin claim 1, wherein the thermostatic device allows the user to define aplurality of occupancy modes, each occupancy mode having a separate userdefined temperature setpoint and selected comfort level scenario.
 20. Asystem, as set forth in claim 19, wherein each occupancy mode includes adefault scenario.
 21. A system, as set forth in claim 19, wherein atleast one occupancy mode has an associated recovery time, the recoverytime being a desired time period of the transition between a previousoccupancy mode and the at least one occupancy mode.
 22. A system, as setforth in claim 19, wherein the thermostatic device allows the user toset at least one start time for at least one occupancy mode.
 23. Asystem, as set forth in claim 22, wherein the system is adapted totransition from the previous occupancy mode to the at least oneoccupancy mode at a time equal to the at least one start time minus therecovery time.
 24. A system, as set forth in claim 1, wherein theplurality of comfort level scenarios includes at least maximum savings,balanced savings and comfort, and maximum comfort.
 25. A system, as setforth in claim 13, wherein the current characteristic of energy isdisplayed graphically using a symbol.
 26. A system, as set forth inclaim 3, wherein the current characteristic of energy is displayed usingat least one of a size and a number of symbols displayed to provide anindication of the relative cost of energy.
 27. A method, as set forth inclaim 8, wherein the characteristic of energy includes a plurality oflevels including at least low, medium, high and critical, wherein theoffset is determined for each of the characteristic levels of energywith each scenario.
 28. A method, as set forth in claim 13, includingthe step of allowing the user to select one of the comfort levelscenarios for each of the plurality of occupancy modes, wherein theoffset is determined for each occupancy mode based on the selectedcomfort level scenario and the characteristic of energy when thetemperature and environment management system is operating within theoccupancy mode.
 29. The method, as set forth in claim 8, wherein theplurality of comfort level scenarios include maximum savings, balancedsavings and comfort, and maximum comfort.